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On The Trail: 7 odd, weird and wonderful things from Election 2014

The election trail can be an odd place, here are a few things we’ve come across in recent days…

IT’S NOW LESS than two weeks until voters go to the polls to pick their favourites in the local and European elections.

Over two thousand candidates for both elections have been all over the country knocking on doors, loitering around shopping centres, and patrolling the streets looking for votes.

You’ve seen their faces on lampposts, their leaflets in your letterbox and you may have even seen them in the flesh on the doorstep.

And you’ve spotted some pretty weird and wonderful stuff which you’ve kindly sent into us.

Here’s our selection from the mailbox this week…

1. The Fianna Fáil candidate who’s got a peacock canvassing for her

We’re not sure if anyone can match Deirdre Smith on this count:

2. The independent candidate who’s awful considerate…  

Paul Hand has a handy and rather polite way of getting around the ‘no junk mail’ warnings that face candidates up and down the country:

3. The door which warns candidates…  

… to try harder! As seen in Harold’s Cross:

image Deirdre Casey Deirdre Casey

4. The Fianna Fáil candidate who faces an uphill battle… 

… with a dog:

image Mark Lordan Mark Lordan

5. The candidate who has suffered some subtle poster vandalism

Very subtle indeed:

poster art.png John Mulligan John Mulligan

6. The handy checklist for candidates 

Are you a candidate? Do you satisfy any of this criteria? As seen in Castlegregory, near Dingle in Co Kerry:

image-2 Blaithin Mac Donnell Blaithin Mac Donnell

7. The candidate who likes the retro look 

Jim Lennon is running for Fine Gael for a seat on Louth County Council using the party’s old logo and design:

jlennon2 Irish Election Literature Irish Election Literature

… And finally… 

You may remember a fortnight ago we showed you Fine Gael councillor Kieran Binchy’s campaign video in which he mastered the art of moving around the city at impossible speed, but he was frankly inaudible.

We’re told his friends and family felt compelled to take action and here is the result:

Councillor Kieran Binchy / YouTube

We’re glad to see the candidates are watching closely.

Seen anything weird and wonderful in your area or on the campaign trail in recent weeks? Drop us an email hugh@thejournal.ie

Read: The truth behind Brian Hayes’s white teeth and whether political parties Photoshop their posters

Read: ‘There were a few screams… mainly from the men’: Labour TD catches rat in Leinster House

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Hugh O'Connell
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