Fine Gael has '48 hours to turn things around' after weekend blows
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Fine Gael believes it has 48 hours to turn its fortunes around as Simon Harris scrambles to overcome a slide in the polls and his own personal misstep.
The party suffered two blows in its election campaign over the weekend. A poll showed it dropped four points, giving Fine Gael just a two-point lead over Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin. Most notable, however, was the fallout from Taoiseach's interaction with a carer in a Kanturk supermarket on Friday.
Mr Harris spent much of his weekend apologising for how he had reacted when addressed by Charlotte Fallon on the Government's record on disabilities. In Mayo on Sunday, Mr Harris said that he was "holding his hands up" on the incident but was not "over-analysing" it.
"I'm human, I make mistakes. But you know what I do when I make a mistake? I own it. I put my hands up. I got it completely wrong. I was wrong, simple as."
Party sources said that the Taoiseach's swift apology to Ms Fallon — calling her early on Saturday after the clip was posted on Friday night — was to be commended.
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However, they accepted that the optics and timing of the incident were a problem for Fine Gael. Added to that was a /Ireland Thinks poll showing Fine Gael down four points to 22% support, with Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil on 20% each.
Perhaps worryingly for Fine Gael, the poll was carried out on Thursday and Friday — before the video went viral.
One party candidate said: "We have lost momentum now, the next 48 hours will be really important for us. It's going to be key.
Another source said: “It’s weird as it’s genuinely hard to discern on the ground and on the doors, but I reckon people are just quietly tilting against us and not really saying much.“
However, while members acknowledge that the Kanturk incident negatively impacted the party's standing, one candidate said the John McGahon issue is also doing severe damage — given the fact that Fine Gael prides itself on being the party of law and order.
The senator is one of the party's candidates in Louth, but Mr Harris spent much of last week answering questions on his candidacy after an interview given by a man who took a civil case against Mr McGahon was published.
Mr McGahon was found 65% civilly liable for the incident and forced to make a payment to Breen White.
"I personally think that the John McGahon thing is a bigger hit for us, I am getting more shit on the doors over it," a candidate said.
However, a number of senior members last night moved to put a positive spin on the polls — insisting that the election is "still all to play for".
One long-serving member admitted that the Taoiseach's interaction with Ms Fallon had damaged the party, but then went onto strongly defend Mr Harris.
"The Taoiseach has to come out swinging, particularly in the debate this week."
Meanwhile, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said the Taoiseach had given people a "glimpse" of what another Fine Gael government would look like in his interaction with Ms Fallon.
"I think people just got a glimpse of actually, what it would mean for Fine Gael to be back in Government with Fianna Fáil, because that's their approach," she told reporters.
"They don't listen, they don't respond, and they seem to think, astonishingly, that people ought to be grateful for their efforts, rather than hearing, reflecting, and changing."
Green Party leader Roderic O'Gorman said he believes the incident represents a "defining moment" in the campaign, stressing the importance of listening to the public.
He also described video footage of an incident involving Mr McGahon as “pretty disturbing”.