MAIRIA CAHILL HAS joined the Labour party and is set to contest the Seanad by-election.
This follows the resignation of Donegal Labour Senator Jimmy Harte.
Cahill came to national attention last year following an appearance in a BBC Northern Ireland’s Spotlight programme in which she claimed she had been raped by an alleged IRA member.
A Labour spokesperson has confirmed to TheJournal.ie that Alan Kelly and Joan Burton have nominated Cahill for the vacant seat.
The nomination is expected to be formally ratified early next week.
Cahill was awarded the Larkin Thirst for Justice Award at the Labour party’s conference in February of this year.
In tomorrow’s Sunday Independent she is set to write about her reasons for accepting the nomination.
In an email to the parliamentary Labour party earlier this evening, Joan Burton said:
Mairia Cahill is an excellent candidate for Seanad Eireann. She has joined our party and is committed to supporting our work inside and outside the Oireachtas. She is a person of depth and broad experience.
“As a party, we should be proud to have someone of such standing, courage, and ability joining our ranks. I ask you to support her nomination as our candidate,” she went on.
It is understood that Cahill will be seeking to serve on the Industrial and Commercial Panel.
- With reporting by Hugh O’Connell
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say