Just five months after running in the General Election in Roscommon/Galway, local Green Party spokesperson Julie O’Donoghue has quit the party.
Her decision to leave is the latest setback for the Greens after a torrid fortnight which also saw the departure from the party of former MEP candidate, Mayo-based Saoirse McHugh.
Julie O’Donoghue only recently set up a branch of the Green Party in Roscommon. She was a first-time candidate for the Greens in the February 2020 General Election, polling a respectable 1,413 number ones.
Ms. O’Donoghue, who announced details of her resignation in a number of Twitter posts on Tuesday, had earlier in that day informed party HQ of her decision by email. She told the Roscommon People on Wednesday that the party urged her to reconsider, but she had her mind made up.
The Roscommon Town resident, who works as a school teacher, said: “On Tuesday I resigned my membership of the Green Party. This is not a decision that I have taken lightly and I have given it careful consideration over a number of weeks.
“I am leaving for a number of reasons but, ultimately, I no longer feel that I am a member of a party that is aligned with my own values and principles or, indeed, its own policies”.
In her statement, Ms. O’Donoghue continued: “In recent weeks, I have felt increasingly disappointed by votes and decisions taken by the party and I no longer wish to be associated with the actions of this government.
“I campaigned against the Programme for Government both within the party and on local and national media and voted against it.
“Recent events have further confirmed for me that this Government does not reflect the transformative change that I campaigned on during the General Election and will not deliver the fair transition to a low carbon society that the Climate and Biodiversity Emergency requires.
“I have registered with the newly-formed Just Transition Greens group as I want to support the people involved and the work that they are doing but it is my hope that it will develop into a separate party committed to real system change.
“I am extremely grateful to everyone who canvassed, supported and voted for me. I know that my decision has disappointed some but I am confident that it is the correct decision for me and that I am staying true to commitments that I made throughout the General Election campaign”.
