Green Party nominates Mal O’Hara as Seanad candidate 

The Green Party has nominated Mal O’Hara as the party’s next Seanad candidate. If elected, he would be the first elected senator who classified himself politically in the North as “other” which means he does not exclusively represent either nationalist nor unionist traditions. It would also ensure that Northern representation continues.

O’Hara is the leader of Green Party Northern Ireland where he is a strong voice for the environment, communities and LGBTQ+ rights. He was nominated by the Green Party’s Seanad Election Task Force and the Executive Committee and will now be the party’s candidate when the Seanad fills the position created by the resignation of Sinn Fein’s Niall Ó Donnghaile.

The Green Party currently has four senators in the upper house: Pippa Hackett, Pauline O’Reilly, Roisin Garvey and Vincent Martin.

O’Hara comes from North Belfast and has been the Leader of the Green Party Northern Ireland since August 2022. He was deputy leader from 2019. Before entering politics, he worked in the community and voluntary sector for almost two decades, addressing inequality and building peace in the most deprived areas of Belfast. He was previously the health manager at Ireland’s largest LGBTQ+ organisation, is the former Vice-Chair of the Equal Marriage Campaign in the North, was a board member for both a local and regional mental health charity and a former Harbour Commissioner.

Party leader Eamon Ryan said today that:

“Mal’s nomination is a proud moment for the Green Party both north and south of the border and strengthens the all-island nature of our party. As a senator, Mal could be a strong voice for all communities across the North as well as the disadvantaged, the LGBT community and, of course, the environment.”