Underdog Hildegarde is a force to be reckoned with

Bradley Bytes – a sort of political column with Dara Bradley

Fine Gael in Galway has consistently underestimated Hildegarde Naughton ever since she emerged as a political force just over a decade ago.

Perhaps disarmed by her good looks, sweet smile, even sweeter voice – she’s a classically trained soprano – and polite manner, many in the male-dominated organisation didn’t rate Ireland’s new ‘super junior’ minister.

In her first ever election, the 2009 locals, Hildegarde unseated the Fine Gael incumbent in Galway City West, John Mulholland, a two-time former city mayor, and long-serving city councillor.

The narrative back then from the old guard was that ‘Mull’ lost his seat, rather than Hildegarde won it. That post-mortem, however, seriously underestimated her ambition – and ability.

The St Pat’s primary school teacher ran a vigorous campaign that showed hunger, determination and aspiration. Remember, the newcomer polled almost 300 first preference votes more than her established party colleague.

In 2011, Fine Gael ran four candidates in the General Election, with Hildegarde regarded as a ‘gender-balance sweeper’. The story of that election was understandably dominated by recounts; and Seán Kyne eventually taking a second Fine Gael seat, along with Brian Walsh, at the expense of party colleague, Senator Fidelma Healy Eames, and Independent Catherine Connolly.

What went unnoticed was Hildegarde’s performance. Though still the fourth-choice Fine Gael candidate, she consolidated her 2009 support base and polled a respectable 3,606 first preferences.

Her upward curve continued later in 2011 when she became mayor of Galway City.

When Senator Healy-Eames and Deputy Brian Walsh lost the party whip for opposing abortion legislation, the then Taoiseach and Fine Gael leader, Enda Kenny, showed them no mercy, and ruthlessly promoted Hildegarde to Seanad Éireann in 2013.

The vacancy had been created when Martin McAleese left the Seanad mid-term, and so there was an element of luck to the appointment and being in the right place at the right time. It blindsided Fine Gael locally and it was a surprise, too, to Hildegarde but she used her national platform in the Upper House to boost her profile in the constituency.

Her appointment to the Seanad suggested the party leadership viewed her as the ‘heir apparent’ to Brian Walsh’s seat but the 2016 General Election was not straightforward.

If she thought it was just a case of her having to hold the seat won by Walsh, in a two-candidate ticket with Kyne, Fine Gael had other ideas. The party added high-profile Mayo senator, John O’Mahony, to the Galway West ticket, which now encompassed South Mayo.

In echoes of the 2009 campaign win over Mull, Hildegarde took a second seat for Fine Gael, despite ‘John O’s’ revered status as the man who managed Galway to All-Ireland success in 1998 and 2001.

Against the odds in last February’s General Election, Hildegarde held the one and only Fine Gael seat in the constituency, despite many in Fine Gael preferring Kyne, the then Government chief whip.

Though she ‘backed the wrong horse’ in the Fine Gael leadership contest – she was unashamedly for Simon Coveney – Hildegarde wasn’t punished by Leo Varadkar, who last week appointed her Minister of State, attending Cabinet, with responsibility for International and Road Transport and Logistics.

Fine Gaelers attributing that promotion to gender and geography are again guilty of underestimating Hildegarde’s staying power. She’s not done yet!

For more Bradley Bytes, see this week’s Galway City Tribune.