3 days ago
Put your money on Bertie Ahern if he joins race for president
T he race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong but, as Damon Runyon put it, that's certainly the way to bet. And if I was betting on the presidential election outcome, especially after last week's shock withdrawal by Mairead McGuinness, I'd bet on a candidate with an international profile for a major political achievement, first-name recognition, a growing level of public support and years of experience at the top of Irish politics. Put your tenner on Bertie Ahern asap, because those odds can only get shorter.
The whole business of his own gambling successes will, of course, be one of the issues that the former taoiseach, Fianna Fail leader and star Mahon tribunal witness is going to have to address if he becomes his party's candidate. Yet a recent poll put him ahead of Micheal Martin as the public's preference for a Fianna Fail nominee, and RTE's Drivetime reported last week that he has strong backing within the party itself.
