Heather Humphreys and Sean Kelly to enter race

A former Irish minister and granddaughter of an Ulster unionist has entered the Irish presidential election race.

Heather Humphreys, a former cabinet minister from Cavan-Monaghan, has confirmed she is seeking support to be the Fine Gael candidate.

The former Monaghan TD has strong links with Northern Ireland and has talked in the past about her unionist connections.

Her grandfather, Robert James Stewart, signed the Ulster Covenant in 1912 in protest at the Home Rule bill which sought to set up a parliament in Dublin.

The party’s original candidate, Mairead McGuinness, said last week that she would not run any more due to health issues.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland programme, Kelly said his original decision to decide not to run was “the hardest decision” he ever made.

Now that it [nominations] is open again, I am delighted and enthusiastic about the prospect of running for president, reflecting what many people have said to me,” he said.

Humphreys said she had decided to “go for it” after being contacted by people within politics and by those “with no political affiliation at all”.

Speaking to Cavan and Monaghan local radio station Northern Sound, Ms Humphreys, who stood down as an elected politician at the last general election in the Republic of Ireland – said she had “plenty in the tank” and that the timing was right, despite ruling herself out of the contest earlier this year.

“I have thought long and hard about this… I have decided to go for it and I will be seeking the Fine Gael nomination,” she said.

“I want to deepen relations between the people of this island north and south.”

Nominations for the party’s presidential candidate reopen at midday and will close at midday on 2 September.

The decision came following a meeting of the Fine Gael Executive Council last night.

Tánaiste Simon Harris said the decision to reopen nominations will enable the party to have a candidate in place by mid-September.