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 is agreed to nominate a candidate, a proposer and seconder will be sought for candidates.

·        If one candidate is proposed and seconded, they will be nominated as the Presidential candidate from Roscommon County Council.

·        If more than one candidate is proposed and seconded, they will be put forward for a roll-call vote.

·        The candidate with the majority of votes will be nominated as the candidate from Roscommon County Council.

Ms. Hanley advised that correspondence from eligible candidates unable to attend had been circulated to Members in advance.  She also read out the list of candidates that had confirmed attendance.