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Next Irish government in limbo as lawmakers convene for vote Irish government in limbo as lawmakers reject premier, rival
(about 5 hours later)
DUBLIN — Ireland’s new parliament convened for the first time Thursday to elect a government leader, but analysts forecast that no candidate would attract enough votes and Prime Minister Enda Kenny would be forced into a much-weakened caretaker role for weeks of uncertain coalition talks. DUBLIN — Ireland’s new parliament overwhelmingly rejected both Prime Minister Enda Kenny and his main rival in votes to select the next government leader Thursday, creating a political vacuum that may take weeks of difficult coalition talks to fill.
Kenny’s Fine Gael remains the largest party following the Feb. 26 election, with 50 lawmakers in the 158-seat parliament. But Fine Gael no longer has a willing coalition partner strong enough to deliver a majority. Its only viable partner, in terms of pure arithmetic, is the No. 2 Fianna Fail party with 44 seats. Kenny, Ireland’s leader since 2011, said he would resign from his position Thursday night, after which the head of state, President Michael D. Higgins, would immediately reappoint him as caretaker prime minister.
Those two parties trace their origins to the opposite sides of Ireland’s civil war and have never shared power in the 94 years since. “Let me assure the Irish people that the government remains in place and that I and my Cabinet colleagues will continue to work hard in the interests of the country and the people,” Kenny told lawmakers.
Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin is running against Kenny in Thursday’s contest to become prime minister. Both sides have downplayed the possibility of forging an unprecedented “grand coalition” combining their two center-ground forces into one, possibly with Kenny and Martin taking turns in the top job. At risk in any protracted stalemate is Ireland’s impressive economic rebound from its 2010 bailout, which was delivered by a Kenny-led government that, until voters cast their ballots Feb. 26, enjoyed the biggest parliamentary majority in Irish history.
Thursday’s Kenny-Martin showdown should split the vote with neither able to command a parliament that otherwise features a half-dozen feud-prone, mostly left-wing small parties and independent lawmakers. That quarter of the house is expected largely to abstain while 23 lawmakers from the Irish nationalist Sinn Fein party vote for their own leader, Gerry Adams. As lawmakers convened Thursday, government statisticians announced that Ireland had cemented its status as Europe’s most rapidly expanding economy with growth rates last experienced in 2000.
Failure to elect a prime minister would leave Kenny’s 5-year-old government in office but unable to wield power during several weeks of coalition negotiations. Underscoring their political impotence, three of Kenny’s ministers lost their parliamentary seats in the election yet remain at the Cabinet table. While Kenny’s Fine Gael remains the largest party, with 50 lawmakers in the 158-seat parliament, it no longer has a coalition partner strong enough to deliver a majority after left-wing voters infuriated by government austerity measures reduced his Labour Party ally to just seven lawmakers.
Coalitions have governed Ireland since 1989. This is the first time that the two heavyweights of political life have been unable to form a numerically stable coalition with anyone but each other. Those 57 lawmakers backed Kenny, but 94 rejected him as “Taoiseach,” the formal Gaelic title for leader. Minutes later, lawmakers dealt an even stronger rebuke to Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin. He received 43 votes, all from his own party, while 108 said no.
Fine Gael and Fianna Fail lawmakers express fears that any short-term cooperation would undermine public support for their own party and boost Sinn Fein, an Irish Republican Army-linked party that over the past decade has grown from a fringe player to become the largest left-wing voice. If, as many expect, Kenny and Martin cannot forge an agreement that delivers stable government, a second election could be called. Irish nationalist Sinn Fein’s 23 lawmakers voted for their own leader, Gerry Adams, who received no support from others.
Analysts expect Kenny to tender his resignation if he fails to secure a parliamentary majority Thursday, but Ireland’s head of state, President Michael D. Higgins, would be obliged to reappoint him immediately as caretaker premier. Before the votes, lawmakers from other camps appealed to Kenny and Martin to forge an unprecedented partnership between their center-ground parties, which trace their origins to the opposite sides of Ireland’s 1922-23 civil war. They have never shared power in the decades since.
Ireland’s parliament might not convene again until early April following two of the biggest events on the Irish calendar, St. Patrick’s Day and Easter. The latter holiday this year involves long-anticipated state commemorations of the 100th anniversary of Dublin’s Easter Rising rebellion against British rule. Coalitions have governed Ireland since 1989. This is the first time that the two heavyweights of political life, Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, have been unable to form a numerically stable coalition with anyone but each other.
If Kenny and Martin cannot forge an agreement that delivers stable government, a second election would follow.
One of the parliament’s most colorful newly elected independents, County Kerry pub owner Danny Healy-Rae, said their partnership was inevitable and accused them both of wasting the parliament’s time. Before the vote, he played the accordion outside parliament as supporters danced jigs in the street.
Ireland’s parliament might not convene again until early April following the year’s two most politically charged events on the Irish calendar, St. Patrick’s Day and Easter. The latter holiday this year involves large-scale state commemorations of the 100th anniversary of Dublin’s Easter Rising rebellion against British rule.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.