Eurolink News

Ever since he appeared on the political radar, Declan Ganley has been a figure of fascination to the Irish media. Endless articles have probed his business dealings with the US military, his investments in Iraq and the Balkans, his shadowy past, his unknown wealth. His campaign against the Lisbon Treaty grabbed the headlines in Brussels and across the world, and EU leaders have closely monitored the rise and fall of his pan-European party Libertas. In every newspaper and radio item about the European elections in the Northwest constituency, Ganley’s name has featured large, even after he failed to win a seat.
The Galway-based multimillionaire is a master at generating column inches, but his defeat proves that publicity does not guarantee popularity. Perhaps his largely negative campaign backfired in the end. It’s no accident that Independent MEP Marian Harkin, who was the butt of much of his personalised criticism, eventually topped the poll on a wave of support from throughout the Northwest.
It’s also been suggested that Libertas had not been around long enough to build up a grassroots organisation to fuel a sufficient election campaign. Fine Gael MEP Jim Higgins claims that Declan Ganley never understood ‘the mechanics of the campaign’. ‘The European elections require blanket, door-to-door, street and shopping centre canvassing; you have to fine-comb the constituency,’ said the MEP. ‘Libertas were patchy; they relied on headlines and making outlandish and outrageous allegations,’ he added.
Mr Ganley has refused to be interviewed by Eurolink on three occasions, and speaking after the elections, he announced he was ‘bowing out’ of politics. He may yet resurface to play a role in campaigning against a second Lisbon referendum, but the in the meantime, Irish politics will be slightly duller for his loss.