Elaine Byrne: Fine Gael’s scaremongering has gifted Bacik a real chance

In its eagerness to stoke up anti-Sinn Féin sentiment in Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael appears to have cleared a path to a Dáil seat for the Labour senator

Labour Party Senator Ivana Bacik campaigning ahead of the by-election in Dublin Bay South where 'soft’ Fine Gael voters will not find it hard to vote for someone with her liberal credentials. Picture: Arthur Carron

The voters of Dublin Bay South will go to the polls this Thursday to decide who will replace Eoghan Murphy of Fine Gael as one of their TDs. What, if anything, does the campaign tell us about the state of national politics?

For starters, we should not underestimate the administrative achievement in facilitating an election of 80,000 potential voters during a pandemic. This is Ireland’s first electoral contest since Covid-19 hit our shores. It gives ...