Fianna Fáil's 'lack of clear identity' blamed for poor election performance in 2020

The report sent to TDs and senators ahead of the think-in contains 59 recommendations that are “practical and will improve the party’s ability to win elections”.

Mr Fleming's introduction says the document is "more about rejuvenating and strengthening the Party for the many elections we face over the coming years" than a postmortem.

Confidence and supply arrangement 

The report puts the blame for the party's poor performance on a number of key factors including the party's stance on repealing the Eighth Amendment, its poor performance on social media, and a lack of connection with rural voters.

It points to the Fianna Fáil decision to prop up the Fine Gael government from 2016 to 2020 as the key reason the party lost seven seats and two percentage points of its votes.

The report also finds that the majority of members are “unclear” about Fianna Fail’s distinct identity: 

The Party is predominantly rural and highly reliant on its decreasing core base in defining itself. We were unable to distinguish ourselves sufficiently in the minds of many people from the Government during the Confidence and Supply Arrangement.

On the abortion referendum, it stops short of criticism, but says the party's decision not to apply the whip was out of tune with modern Ireland.

Stance on Repeal 'not in tune' with the public 

"The 2018 referendum to repeal the 8th Amendment of the Constitution captured the imagination of many voters. The Party’s policy was that this was a conscience vote for individual members. Many members of the public felt the Party was not in tune with modern social issues in Ireland."

It finds that the practice of appointing the national director of elections on the eve of the campaign was “not appropriate” and recommends that the party “must ensure appropriate and effective governance structures are in place for making preparations and for managing general elections".  

A review of the party’s European campaign has come with dire warnings, noting that “the current candidate selection system for the European Elections is not fit for purpose,” and candidates were selected at an “exceptionally late date”.

Disparity between local and European elections

A total of 190,000 people voted for Fianna Fáil in the local elections but did not vote for the party in the European election on the same day.

The report found that there was inadequate coordination between the local and European election campaigns.

The report recommends that Fianna Fáil should immediately review the selection process and implement an appropriate methodology “as a matter of urgency".  

Prior to selection, candidates should be able to demonstrate an ability to mount a campaign and build a team and perform effectively on national and local media and European Election candidates should be selected at a much earlier date. 

It also recommends that the party should put in place a centrally coordinated intensive marketing campaign for candidates, and there should be “much greater coordination” between the European and local election campaigns, with all-party literature referring to both campaigns. A review of the 2019 local election found that the campaign was a “success,” according to the report.

Party is strong in local government

Fianna Fáil is the largest party in local government, with 74% of candidates selected at convention elected. However, just 21% of candidates were female.

The report recommends that the party must prioritise the identification of as many candidates as possible under 30 years of age, both female and male, “while balancing youth and experience”, for the next local elections.

The party will spend hours dissection its electoral performances in the last 20 months as Taoiseach Micheál Martin faces down the dissension when the parliamentary party meets in person.

The party's TDs and senators will decamp to the Slieve Russell Hotel in Cavan for two days from tomorrow, Thursday, with sources saying that the meeting will be "make or break" for Mr Martin, who has said he aims to lead the party beyond the end of his tenure as Taoiseach next December.