Laois women taking on the male dominated political landscape

It looks likely that female county councillors in Laois will remain in the minority after the coming local election, with just 11 women numbered among the 47 candidates.

Of the 19 seats in Laois, just five are currently held by women. See full list of Laois election candidates here. 

The Leinster Express / Laois Live spoke to some female councillors past, present and potentially future, to get their views on why they are still a minority.

Cllr Thomasina Connell in the Portlaoise Municipal District became the first ever sitting Cathaoirleach of Laois County Council to give birth, in 2022. She was also first in Ireland to avail of some of the new maternity benefits for local representatives.

She actually reports no gender negativity directed at her since her election in 2019 as a Fine Gael local representative.

“I think it’s a worthwhile thing to do. I would recommend to anyone to put themselves forward. It is a role for anyone in society to enter, regardless of gender. I certainly think that if we want balanced decision making, we need to have representation,” she said.

She gave her view on reasons for the imbalance.

“I think it’s tradition. There haven’t been as many females as males in politics, and as they say ‘if you can’t see it, you can’t be it’. It was not seen as something women took on as a role or a natural career path,” she said.

Cllr Connell notes that in the next General Election, there will be a 40% quota of women, but no such quota applies in local elections.

Maria McCormack is one of four female candidates for Laois Sinn Féin.

“It's important for me to be able to represent everyone in my constituency, men, women and children.

“If someone wants to change their own life for the better, or their community, that just makes them a good person and gender does not come into it. We connect on a human level.

“When I announced I was running, I got a lot of disgusting comments about appearance, dresscode, body shape, mainly from men.

“I feel as a woman you are judged and criticised much more than men and I really became aware when I joined Tiktok and I had to block my children to protect them from seeing what people say.

“I just want to get stuck in and be of service to as many people as I can. Who cares if my hair isn't picture perfect,” Maria McCormack said.

Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald is 30 years serving as a public representative in Fianna Fáil, in Portlaoise Town Council then the Municipal District.

She is actually the only female Fianna Fáil candidate in the Laois local election.  

“I don't know why that has happened. Within Fianna Fáil I've never felt anything but welcome. We have always had a good women's group. I've never had difficulties, the opposite to be fair.

“I've never had any negative reaction from the public because I'm female. I would encourage everyone to go forward if interested. It is important for women to be represented, it's nice to see women candidates.

“Four out of the seven Portlaoise councillors are women, I don't think there's any problem here,” she said.

“Overall I deal with the same general council issues as my male colleagues. Being a woman has never stopped me doing my job,” Cllr Fitzgerald said.

Non-party candidate Pauline Flanagan had previously served in the Portlaoise district.

"My experience on the campaign trail has been both challenging and rewarding. I chose to run because I firmly believe in helping others in the Laois community. My mantra is ‘nothing will change if nothing changes’.

“It has of course been challenging at times, balancing family and work, as well as canvassing and campaigning for the past four months, and perhaps that can deter many women from entering political life.

“One thing I learnt from canvassing in previous elections is the importance of always having someone with me. I simply would not feel safe going out on my own. Additionally, some of my closest friends had bad experiences before - for example / being spat on at the doors. I don’t want them experiencing this, so this time round, I have insisted that because I am the candidate, I bring just one friend or family member each time so that they are not on their own at doors.

“Overall though, I have to say that throughout my journey, I have encountered mainly support, as many constituents appreciate the need for more women in politics and have shown great encouragement,” she said.

Former Mountmellick Town Councillor Rosemary Whelan served for a decade until 2014. Now a Parliamentary Assistant to Deputy Charlie Flanagan, she turned down an invite by Fine Gael to run for local election.

“It didn’t work for me personally. Elected politics is not for everyone, I love working in the backroom, not on the front line. I’m lucky, my work is very flexible, I have a good work / home life balance,” she said.

She is aware of the rising aggression towards female politicians particularly on social media.

“When I was elected at 20, Bebo was the thing, there were no social media wars. Things certainly have changed. It’s widely reported, women politicians do suffer abuse, with comments on their appearance or their speech,” she said.

No women currently sit on the six seater Mountmellick Borris-in-Ossory Municipal District. Of the 15 candidates there, just three are female.

Rosemary said perhaps the general low number is because it is not a “ family friendly role”.

“The life of a councillor is difficult, it’s very busy. There are a lot of functions at night. It is a life choice for some.

“Things have changed in that you can get maternity leave now, that’s amazing. The Government has done a lot of work, but a lot of it is still down to personal choice. Even a male councillor with a young family will find it hard.

“It’s important as females, that our voices are heard. We really are the only ones who can advocate for women’s issues to be recognised fairly,” Rosemary said.

The Women for Election group campaigns against discrimination in politics.

They say that “incidents of harassment, intimidation and discrimination against women and marginalised groups in politics persist”.

The group, with An Garda Siochána and See Her Elected published a leaflet of safety tips for election candidates.

They include canvassing in pairs, avoiding use of personal social media and phone, and how to report hate crimes.

The 2024 Local Elections will take place on Friday, June 7.