Cork MEP Billy Kelleher has said he would have won the 2025 presidential election had he been selected as Fianna Fáil’s candidate. Asked if he would have won the election, Mr Kelleher said: “Yes, I believe I would have.”The Fianna Fáil MEP said Ireland is a “modern, dynamic country” with a young population, and he could have connected “well beyond traditional Fianna Fáil voters”. Mr Kelleher said the “damage was done” after Mr Gavin’s withdrawal, saying the former candidate was not able to withstand scrutiny and interrogation. The party’s disastrous presidential election sent shockwaves through Fianna Fáil, with the fallout leaving Taoiseach Micheál Martin badly damaged. “That’s the fear of many of my colleagues, holding clinics on their own in community halls or in rooms around their constituency," Mr Kelleher said.

Source: Irish Examiner December 27, 2025 12:00 UTC