Irish Green Party candidate celebrates election victory with a defiant kiss on live TV
Roderic O’Gorman shares a kiss with his partner following his election in Dublin (RTÉ/Twitter)
Irish Green Party candidate Roderic O’Gorman was elected yesterday in Dublin, and immediately pulled his partner Ray Healy in for a kiss.
The beautiful moment was caught by RTÉ and broadcast to people across Ireland as counting in the country’s general election continued.
O’Gorman was elected on the sixth count in the Dublin West constituency, where Ireland’s outgoing gay Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is also a sitting TD.
The Green Party candidate took the last of four seats behind Paul Donnelly of Sinn Féin, Jack Chambers of Fianna Fáil and Varadkar.
Green Party candidate’s kiss on television warms hearts of LGBT+ people in Ireland.
The powerful moment has warmed the hearts of LGBT+ people in Ireland, with many pointing out that a same-sex kiss broadcast across the country is still a relatively rare occurrence. This is especially true in Irish politics where there are few openly LGBT+ elected representatives.
I’m biased but seeing @rodericogorman get elected and show so much love towards his partner makes my heart soar.
The couple were met with an outpouring of love and support online following O’Gorman’s election and their kiss on RTÉ.
This is the FIRST man I ever canvassed for and the only person I canvassed for in every election since I joined 12 years ago so I like to take this time to say
IT ABOUT TIME !! @rodericogorman #ge2020 pic.twitter.com/NxtYLt7YdK
— Darcy Lonergan (@djlonergan) February 9, 2020
I’m biased but seeing @rodericogorman get elected and show so much love towards his partner makes my heart soar.
I love them both. 🥰😍😭😭🌻🇮🇪 #GE2020 pic.twitter.com/fg2MV7COaI— Iarnród Éireann BROCKOVICH 💜 (@yascaoimhin) February 9, 2020
Gorgeous moment with @greenparty_ie @rodericogorman being congratulated and kissed by his partner after being elected in Dublin West. #Ge2020 pic.twitter.com/2aqY7f64Ln— Róisín Jingle 🎄 (@roisiningle) February 9, 2020
It's an utter joy to see @rodericogorman become elected in Dublin West after canvassing and campaigning and working tirelessly for years to get here.
And the cherry on top was seeing him celebrate with his equally lovely partner @rayhealy on the tellybox! 🏳️🌈🏳️🌈🏳️🌈#GE2020 pic.twitter.com/lpuzitw47o— Ciarán O' Driscoll / Ó Drisceoil🇵🇸🇺🇦🏳️⚧️ (@bearaboi) February 9, 2020
Centre-right Fianna Fáil claims most seats but left-wing Sinn Féin has the biggest gains in Irish general election.
O’Gorman’s election comes after Ireland held its first general election since 2016 on February 8. Final counts came in overnight, with centre-right party Fianna Fáil taking 38 seats of 160.
They were followed closely by left-wing party Sinn Féin, who claimed 37 seats. Fine Gael fell behind with 35, showing a significant drop-off in support for gay leader Leo Varadkar.
While Sinn Féin came out with one seat less than Fianna Fáil, the main talking point in the election has been the left-wing party’s significant gains. It is thought that Sinn Féin would have won a majority if they had fielded more candidates in several constituencies.
Meanwhile, O’Gorman and the Green Party also had significant gains in Ireland, indicating that more and more voters see the climate emergency as a priority. The Green Party came out with 12 seats in the 33rd Dáil.
Those elected must now go about the business of trying to form a government, a task that will likely be a challenge with no party commanding a clear lead.
