Social Democrats select Aidan Farrelly to contest general election in Kildare North

Prosperous native to fight to retain seat held by Catherine Murphy

Aiden Farrelly at the selection convention last night

Reporter:

Niamh O'Donoghue

25 Jul 2024 10:14 AM

Cllr Aidan Farrelly has been selected by the Social Democrats to represent the party in Kildare North in the General Election.

This follows the decision by co-founder and leader of the party, Kildare North TD Catherine Murphy, to stand down after more than 30 years in politics.

Aidan Farrelly is a second term county councillor and represents Clane Local Electoral Area. He was selected to run by the local branch at a selection convention in Ardclough Community Centre last night (Wednesday, July 24).

Aidan is a resident of Prosperous, having grown up in Clane. He is a lecturer in the department of Applied Social Studies in Maynooth University. He is former a Youth and Community Development worker and Team Leader with Kildare Youth Services, and opened the first Youth Project in Clane in 2008. Since then he has worked in many communities throughout Kildare including Naas, Celbridge, Kilcock, Leixlip, Straffan, Maynooth, Prosperous and others.

He is married with three children and he says that his experience of having a young family in North Kildare has encouraged him to seek change with issues such as childcare, access to education and lack of affordable housing contributing to his commitment to a fairer, more equal society.

Speaking after the selection convention, Cllr Farrelly said: “I’m delighted, humbled and honoured to have been selected by the branch. “I have big boots to fill following on from Catherine Murphy’s long service to her constituents and I look forward to getting stuck into the campaign to make sure the people of Kildare North continue to have a Social Democrat representing them.”

Welcoming Aidan’s selection, Catherine Murphy, TD, said: “I am delighted that we have a candidate the calibre of Aidan Farrelly nominated to run for the Social Democrats in Kildare North.

“If elected, he will be an incredible representative for the people of this constituency in Leinster House. “Aidan is one of the most ethical people I’ve come across, a passion I share – and he will be great advocate for the change that we need in Kildare North and in Ireland. “I wish him every success in his campaign and look forward to working with him to encourage the people of Kildare North to once again elect a Social Democrat TD.”

ADVERTISEMENT - CONTINUE READING BELOW

To continue reading this article,
please subscribe and support local journalism!

Subscribing will allow you access to all of our premium content and archived articles.

To continue reading this article for FREE,
please kindly register and/or log in.

Registration is absolutely 100% FREE and will help us personalise your experience on our sites. You can also sign up to our carefully curated newsletter(s) to keep up to date with your latest local news!

We've got Donegal Covered...

Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie

Buy a paper

Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.

Buy Now

Get the news

Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.

Iconic Media is Ireland's largest independently owned regional newspaper and media group, with an unrivalled audience in print, online and mobile. We have 19 regional newspapers and 21 digital sites.

Iconic Digital Titles

Iconic Print Titles

Letterkenny Live

This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.

Social Democrats select Aidan Farrelly to contest general election in Kildare North

Prosperous native to fight to retain seat held by Catherine Murphy

Upgrade your hearing – Experience the power of modern technology with House of Hearing Naas

The little-known Budget 2026 measures you might have missed including €325 payment

‘Disgraceful’ - Mixed reactions to Budget 2026 as multiple groups hit out at Government

Budget 2026 Calculator: How much will I get as a worker, parent or pensioner?

Budget 2026: No tax cut for workers as Social Welfare recipients get weekly and Christmas hike

PICTURES: Naas celebrate four Kildare Senior Camogie titles in a row

PICTURES: Heavenly transformation as historic church turned home hits market for under €500k

PICTURES: Sneak peek of Netflix's House of Guinness ahead of highly anticipated release

PICTURES: Well-known Irish horse trainer’s home and race track goes up for millions

PICTURES: All the best photos as thousands run the Dublin Half Marathon in Phoenix Park

We've got Donegal Covered...

Buy a paper

Get the news