A BATTERED and bruised Gay Mitchell was yesterday coming to terms with his disastrous performance in the presidential election.
"Not good" was how the Fine Gael candidate described his mood yesterday, a day after his 6.4 per cent showing in the election. "I'm trying now to draw a line under what happened and get on with my life," he told The Irish Times.
Calling for an “objective examination” of the way presidential elections were conducted, he said there was a need for a shorter campaign and for restrictions on the way candidates were interrogated during it.
“There needs to be some parameters set on what is reasonable to ask a person and what is not. Some questions put to candidates in this election crossed the line.”
After almost five months on the road seeking the Fine Gael nomination and then canvassing the electorate, he said his priority now was to put back on the weight he had lost. “I’m as light now as I was when I got married.”
The lowest points in the election came when he was being “constantly asked about the latest poll, or questions not relevant to the campaign”. Asked why he had done so badly, Mr Mitchell said the results showed that people wanted a credible Independent as president. “Being an active member of the Fine Gael party was not a massive plus.”
They would have backed David Norris if he hadn’t “blown up” and then shifted their allegiance to Seán Gallagher. However, this changed after Mr Gallagher’s hopes were torpedoed by Martin McGuinness during last Monday’s television debate: “Fine Gael people then said, ‘Gay can’t make it so we’ll support Michael D.’”
He said he “hoped to the end” that he would figure in the final shake-out: “I knew there would be a bounce against Seán Gallagher after last Monday, but I was too far behind to pick it up.”
Asked whether he had received sufficient support from his own party, he said individual members and Young Fine Gael had been “stalwarts”. If others were not involved, this was not something he would know of, as it would have been handled by his team.
“We’re in Government and Fine Gael Ministers are in office. Many of our press officers have gone over to Government offices. I’m not in any position to give an objective view.”
Mr Mitchell said the highlights of his campaign came when ordinary people, including a 16-year-old boy who later joined Fine Gael and a blind woman in Cork, took the trouble to express their support for him.
He said the campaign period should be shorter. “Every conceivable thing was brought up, partially because there’s so little to talk about in terms of the substance of a president’s work. A shorter campaign would be more focused.”
Mr Mitchell flies this morning to Brussels, to resume his work as an MEP and member of the European Parliament’s development, and economic and monetary affairs committees.
Mary Davis, who came last in the election, said yesterday she was going to take a break for some time. After that, she would return to her job as chief executive of Special Olympics Europe Eurasia, from which she took leave of absence for the presidential campaign.
Also taking a break is Independent candidate Dana Rosemary Scallon. Her husband Damien said yesterday that she hadn’t taken any decision on whether she would stand again in an election.
Mr Scallon said Dana would be “resuming normal duties” in her singing career shortly but “hasn’t thought much beyond that”.
Another Independent candidate, David Norris, is expected to return to the Seanad when it returns on Tuesday week, while Sinn Féin’s candidate, Martin McGuinness, will return next month to his post as joint First Minister in the Northern Executive.