THIS four seater, which includes major towns like Mallow, Fermoy and Mitchelstown on the northern side and Midelton, Youghal, and Cobh in the east, has returned Mr Sherlock several times in the past.
His opponents say he has neither the resources nor the local party machine to mount a successful challenge on this occasion.
But they have said that about him before, and he proved them wrong. The one thing that cannot be said about Joe Sherlock is that he lacks commitment. He is a ceaseless worker, a lively member of both Cork Co Council and the Southern Health Board, and he is good at clinics and on the doorsteps.
Mr Sherlock has borrowed £5,000 to fight this campaign - a fact about which he is quite frank. His campaign, he says, is going well and his aim is to take a seat. He has not, he adds, targeted any particular seat in the constituency but is convinced that when the votes are in, he will be back in the Dail. That possibility should not be ruled out.
He was first elected to the Dail in June 1981 and was returned again the following year. But in November of 1982, when a vote of no confidence in the Government, tabled by Dr Garret FitzGerald, was successful, he failed to get back.
In 1987, he regained his seat, taking almost 7,000 first preferences.
He was returned again in the 1989 election but lost out to Labour's Mr John Mulvihill at the last election. His local work and his career in the Seanad have kept his political ambitions alive, and now, he believes, his time is at hand once again.
For that to happen though, one of the sitting TDs will have to be seen off. Mr Sherlock will not engage in speculation about whose seat that might be, but there are some intriguing possibilities.
Fianna Fail, with Ned O'Keeffe, and Michael Ahern, has two seats. Mr Paul Bradford of Fine Gael has one and Labour's Mr Mulvihill has one.
There is some talk about the Ahern seat and how safe it is. The pundits are saying that the breakdown could be like this: Mr O'Keeffe to top the poll; Mr Bradford to come in second; Mr Mulvihill to retain his seat with a strong showing in third place; and Mr Sherlock to give Mr Ahern a run for his money as the destination of the final seat becomes clearer.
There are other candidates in the field too. Mr David Staunton will be the second Fine Gael candidate this time.
Mr Sean O'Connor will stand as an independent; Mr J.J. Flavin is the candidate for the Progressive Democrats and Mr Kieran McCarthy is standing for Sinn Fein.
Cork East is the food basket of Co Cork, with rich agricultural land and lush dairy pastures. But it has its industrial side too. Mr Mulvihill, with his base in Cobb, has been outspoken about the travails at Irish Steel, now owned by the Indian steel giant Ispat.
Verolme Dockyard has also been on his agenda, as has the environment.
Issues which seem set to matter in this election include unemployment - which is high in some of the larger towns - falls in farmers' incomes, the environment and crime.
Tomorrow: Longford Roscommon; Cork South Central; and Donegal South West.