Bray Sinn Féin has selected two candidates for the forthcoming Local Elections in May 2019. Grace McManus will stand in the Bray East LEA and Dermot ‘Daisy’ O’Brien will stand in Bray West which includes Kilmac, Enniskerry and Powerscourt.
At the selection Convention held in Bray on Wednesday night it was acknowledged that both candidates represented a hugely positive step forward for the party. “Both are outstanding candidates in their own right” remarked TD John Brady, “But together they bring even more in terms of a Sinn Féin team that will represent and stand with the people across all of the communities in the two electoral areas.”
As a young woman who has grown up in Bray, Grace will bring the voice of her generation to an arena that rarely hears what they have to say. Currently working for Sinn Féin in Leinster House Grace has a unique insight that will benefit her local work in so many different ways.
Dermot on the other hand has developed deep connections within communities over the last twenty years and will bring an integrity that is often missing in the Council chamber. His track record of supporting people in difficult times as well as providing outlets for positive growth and development are testament to Dermot’s commitment to community.
Dermot will be campaigning on a platform for change and said that “If you change nothing, nothing will change. There seems to be a massive disconnect between people and local democracy. We want to know why that is, and we want to be part of the change that brings communities closer to the decision making that determines the futures of their towns and villages!”
Grace said “The timing of this convention is quite fitting. The end of the year is a time of gratitude and I am really so grateful for the party for giving me this opportunity. I am really passionate about young people in politics. My time as an advisor for the party has given me so much knowledge and skills about making change. I am driven to take my capacity within this regard, use my experience from my many years of activism within Bray, and push to make real change.”
Brady concluded by saying “Dermot and Grace join a strong, dynamic team of Sinn Féin candidates that will be contesting the Local Election in May 2019. We are determined at breaking the Old Boys Club that controls Wicklow County Council, and put in place a council that is accountable and answerable to the citizens in Wicklow they are supposed to represent.”
