Overview

• Nominations open at noon on August 19 and close at noon on September 2 under the party’s expedited timetable.
• Prospective nominees must secure support from 20 Fine Gael parliamentary members, 25 party councillors and five Executive Council members.
• Seán Kelly announced on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland that he will seek the party’s nomination, citing the changed landscape after McGuinness’s exit.
• Former deputy leader Heather Humphreys is considering a run as endorsements mount from Frances Fitzgerald, Emer Higgins and Independent TDs Noel Grealish, Seán Canney and Michael Healy-Rae.
• Other declared bids include Independent TD Catherine Connolly and businessman Gareth Sheridan, while Fianna Fáil MEP Billy Kelleher has urged an urgent party meeting to decide its stance.