Eoin O’Broin ‘won’t be voting’ for Eoin O’Broin in upcoming election
By Maurice Garvey
IN WHAT is not quite a shock twist, Sinn Féin TD Eoin Ó Broin confirmed he ‘wont be voting for Eoin Ó Broin’ in the 2019 local elections on May 24.
That is, he won’t be voting for the Independent candidate Eoin Ó Broin – no relation – who earlier this year, announced he was running in Clondalkin electoral area.
Independent candidate Eoin O'Broin while out canvassing, came face to face with Sinn Fein TD Eoin O'Broin
Deputy Ó Broin said the addition of someone with the same name as him, within the same constituency “caused a little confusion”.
“Some people are asking if I have left Sinn Féin and am running for the council,” he said.
“To remove any doubt, I have not left Sinn Féin, I am not going independent and I am not running in the council elections.”
Meanwhile, Independent candidate Ó Broin, a Clondalkin native who lived in Sweden and France for years until returning in 2017, said the name also led to confusion for his family.
“When Eoin first started working on the council, people were asking my mother if I had joined Sinn Fein,” he said.
“But we did have a nice co-operation with each other during the referendum last year. It’s a pity he won’t vote for me because I’d vote for all who I co-operated with.”
The two met face-to-face on the campaign trail in the Lealand estate two weeks ago, sharing a smile for the camera.
Deputy Ó Broin said the independent candidate is “a decent guy but isolated independents cannot deliver real change whether in the council, the Dáil or the European Parliament.”
The Sinn Fein TD, a former councilor, who topped the poll in Dublin Mid-West for the 2016 General Election, said he will instead be backing his party colleagues on the ballot.
Independent candidate Ó Broin, a gaeilgeoir who is fluent in four languages, disagrees with the sentiment.
“Independents have been making a difference since Tony Gregory,” he said.
“And now with Katherine Zappone, Shane Ross, notwithstanding his performance, they can act as a go-between between parties and help create good ideas.
“I’m hopeful for the local elections, people seem to like that I have experienced life abroad, and that I am involved in local organisations and groups.”
