The following candidates have sought the support of Roscommon County Council for nomination.  These are listed in alphabetical order by surname:

•       Mr William P. Allen

•       Ms Dolores Cahill

•       Mr Obi Joseph Chikelue

•       Mr Nick Delehanty

•       Mr Gearóid Duffy

•       Mr David Harrington

•       Mr Charlie Keddy

•       Ms Charlotte Keenan

•       Ms Séana Kerr

•       Dr Donncha MacGabhann

•       Ms Lorna McCormack

•       Mr Conor McGregor

•       Mr Keith McGrory

•       Ms Sarah Louise Mulligan

•       Mr William O'Connell

•       Mr Paudie O Duinnín

•       Ms Lucy-Anne O'Leary

•       Mr Dominic Plant

•       Mr Walter Ryan-Purcell

•       Mr Gareth Sheridan

•       Mr Gerben Uunk

Correspondence received from these candidates is enclosed.  Any further correspondence to members from these candidates will be issued on receipt.

The Cathaoirleach Cllr. Liam Callaghan opened the meeting by stating that the meeting was for the purpose of the nomination of a Presidential candidate. He informed Members that on 3rd September 2025, James Browne, Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage issued the Presidential Order appointing Friday 24th October 2025, as Polling Day for the forthcoming Presidential Election.

He outlined that under the provisions of Article 12 of the Constitution and Section 16 of the Presidential Elections Act 1993, a candidate for the Office of President of Ireland may be nominated by four County or City Councils. He further noted that to be eligible for election as President, candidates must be an Irish citizen who is 35 or older.

Cathaoirleach Cllr. Callaghan reported that 21 candidates had initially sought the support of Roscommon County Council and since the agenda was circulated, an additional 5 requests had also been received, of which 20 candidates were deemed eligible for nomination. Eligibility was confirmed through the submission of a valid passport.

He confirmed that all candidate information had been circulated to Members for their consideration. He then read aloud the names of the eligible candidates, listed alphabetically by surname:

Mr. William P. Allen

Ms. Dolores Cahill

Mr. Obi Joseph Chikelue

Mr. Nick Delehanty

Mr. Gearóid Duffy

Mr. Charlie Keddy

Ms. Charlotte Keenan

Mr. Thomas Kelly

Ms. Séana Kerr

Ms. Lorna McCormack

Mr. Keith McGrory

Ms. Rowena Mulcahy

Ms. Sarah Louise Mulligan

Mr. Aodhan ohArrachtain

Ms. Lucy-Anne O'Leary

Mr. Dominic Plant

Mr. Walter Ryan-Purcell

Mr. Gareth Sheridan

Dr. Cora Stack

Mr. Gerben Uunk

The Meetings Administrator, Ms. Karen Hanley, outlined the nomination process, which had been agreed by the Corporate Policy Group on 28th July 2025 and circulated to Members via email on 29th July 2025. The process was as follows:

·        To be eligible for election as President, candidates must be an Irish citizen who is 35 or older.

·        All candidates that have requested a nomination will be required to submit a copy of their passport to prove that they are eligible for election.

·        All eligible candidates will be invited to a Special Meeting of the Council to present to the Members.

·        In the Special Meeting each candidate will be allocated a maximum of 10 minutes, comprised of 5 minutes presentation/speaking time, and 5 minutes for questions and answers from the Council. If the candidate exceeds their allocated presentation/speaking time, then the time allocated for questions and answers will be reduced accordingly, not exceeding the maximum 10-minute time allocation per candidate.

·        Following the completion of the candidate presentations the meeting will then adjourn for 20 minutes.

·        Thereafter the meeting will recommence.

·        A proposer and seconder of the decision to nominate any candidate will be sought, and agreement will be sought from the Council. If a counter-proposal is put forward not to nominate any candidate, the motion will be put to a vote. The motion will either be carried or not carried as an outcome of the vote in line with standing orders.

·        If it  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.25

All eligible candidates that have expressed an interest have been invited to address this Special Meeting of the Council.  Eligible candidates that have confirmed they will attend this meeting will make 5 minute presentations to the meeting.  A list of confirmed attendees will be available at the start of the meeting.

Should any additional nomination requests be submitted by eligible candidates after the distribution of this agenda, but before the meeting commences, they will also be invited to present. Correspondence will issue to members regarding same as relevant.

The Cathaoirleach invited each candidate to present in scheduled order and reminded them of their obligation to comply with the Code of Conduct and Standing Orders of Roscommon County Council, with emphasis on respect, dignity, equality, and integrity. He affirmed his responsibility to uphold the integrity of the chamber and stated that speaking privileges would be revoked for any candidate who violated these rules.

Each candidate was allocated a maximum of 10 minutes, comprising a 5-minute presentation followed by 5-minutes for questions with the Members. Members asked various questions, which were answered accordingly.

The following candidates confirmed attendance to address the Council.

Ms. Charlotte Keenan

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Ms. Lucy-Anne O'Leary

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr. Gearóid Duffy

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr. Gerben Uunk

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr. Keith McGrory

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr. Nick Delehanty

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr. Walter Ryan-Purcell

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr. Charlie Keddy

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr. William P. Allen

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Ms. Dolores Cahill

·        Attended remotely, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr Obi Joseph Chikelue

·        Did not attend.

Dr. Cora Stack

·        Attended remotely, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Ms. Séana Kerr

·        Did not attend remotely due to technical issues. Presentation material was circulated to Members for consideration.

Mr. Aodhan ohArrachtain

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

Mr. Thomas Kelly

·        Attended remotely. After several warnings Mr. Kelly was removed from the meeting by the Cathaoirleach due to failure to comply with Code of Conduct and Standing Orders.

Ms. Rowena Mulcahy

·        Attended in person, delivered presentation and responded to questions from Members.

·        20 minutes

Following the presentations, the Cathaoirleach thanked all candidates for their contributions and adjourned the meeting for 20 minutes, in line with the agreed procedure.

Cathaoirleach Cllr. Callaghan stated that the next order of business was to decide whether Roscommon County Council will nominate any candidate.

At the request of the Cathaoirleach, the Meetings Administrator clarified the procedure for nomination to Members.  

The Cathaoirleach asked Members if there was a proposal to nominate any candidate. There was no proposal. Following no proposal, Cathaoirleach Cllr. Callaghan declared that Roscommon County Council would not be nominating a candidate for the 2025 Presidential Election.