Jim Gavin’s name will still appear on the ballot for the presidential election taking place on Friday, 24 October, and any votes cast for him will be counted like those for the other two candidates, even though he has officially withdrawn from the race, reports RTE.
On Sunday evening, Mr Gavin announced he was stepping down from the contest “with immediate effect”, saying recent days had prompted him “cause to reflect”.
His decision came after the Irish Independent published a report over the weekend revealing that Mr Gavin owed €3,300 to a former tenant, reports RTE.
In a public statement, Mr Gavin acknowledged that he “made a mistake that was not in keeping with my character and the standards I set myself” and stated that he was “now taking steps to address the matter”.
The Taoiseach dismissed claims that Fianna Fáil was aware of Mr Gavin’s past issue with a tenant before naming him as their presidential nominee, calling them “not a fair representation of the situation at all”, reports RTE.
The Department of Housing and Local Government, responsible for enforcing electoral law in Ireland, reached its official decision this morning following consultations with Attorney General Rossa Fanning throughout the previous day.
While the outcome had been anticipated, it is understood that the department’s Presidential Returning Officer, Barry Ryan, met with the Attorney General on Monday afternoon to consider whether or not Mr Gavin could be removed from the ballot, reports RTE.
As per current electoral legislation, Mr Gavin’s withdrawal came after the nomination period had closed on Wednesday, 24 September, which means his name legally cannot be taken off the ballot.
Reportedly, discussions explored various legal avenues, including the possibility of using Section 164 of the 1992 Electoral Act—a rarely used clause—to remove his name in the case of an “emergency or special difficulty”.
However, sources indicated that applying this unusual provision might lead to other complications, especially regarding the first postal ballots already sent to students studying away from home, workers abroad on election day, and some individuals with disabilities, reports RTE.
Roughly 15,000 postal ballots are set to be issued for the election, and removing Mr Gavin’s name would require those already sent to be recalled, reprinted, and redistributed—raising the risk of inconsistencies and even potential legal action, however unlikely.
After evaluating these legal complexities, the Department of Housing issued a statement last night confirming that Mr Gavin will remain an official candidate on the ballot, reports RTE.
This means that even though he is no longer actively campaigning, the former Dublin GAA manager will still be a valid option for voters.
A vote for Mr Gavin on 24 October will not be classified as spoiled; instead, it will be counted as valid, and any preference transfers from his votes will be treated according to standard procedure, reports RTE.
Should Mr Gavin win the election despite having stepped down, he would still be eligible to assume the presidency.
If he were to decline the position, the role would not automatically go to the second-place candidate, but instead, a new presidential election would be required.
Fianna Fáil stated this morning that the party was first alerted to a possible tenant dispute on 8 September, after receiving an inquiry from the Irish Independent, reports RTE.
The party claimed Mr Gavin had assured them multiple times that he had no outstanding issues with any tenant.
According to Fianna Fáil, this only changed on Saturday when Mr Gavin began recalling details after the tenant personally reached out to the party with more information, reports RTE.
Speaking yesterday, Mr Martin said the party had conducted “very comprehensive due diligence” on Mr Gavin, but the tenant issue had been “probably buried somewhere in the recesses of his mind”.
During an appearance on RTÉ’s Six One News, the Taoiseach said Mr Gavin had been “repeatedly asked” whether any tenant disputes existed, and had responded: “Absolutely not,” reports RTE.
“He clearly did not deal with it at that time or since, and probably buried it somewhere in the recesses of his mind and didn’t deal with it and the consequences of that have now come home,” reports RTE.
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