Claire Kerrane (born 24 April 1992) is an Irish

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...

politician who has been a

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms such as ''Member of Parli ...

(TD) for the Roscommon–Galway constituency since the

2020 general election The following elections were scheduled to occur in 2020. The International Foundation for Electoral Systems maintains a comprehensive list of upcoming elections on its E-Guide Platform. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calend ...

. She is a member of the Sinn Féin

Ard Chomhairle or ''ardfheis'' ( , ; "high assembly"; plural ''ardfheiseanna'') is the name used by many Irish political party, political parties for their annual party conference. The term was first used by Conradh na Gaeilge, the Irish language cultural org ...

. She is the party's Spokesperson on Social Protection, Community and Rural Development and the Islands.

Early and personal life

Kerrane, the daughter of Gerry and Angela Kerrane, from the village of Tibohine,

County Roscommon "Steadfast Irish heart" , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Roscommon.svg , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Ireland , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Connacht , subdi ...

. She was raised on a farm. She has said there was no history of republicanism in her family: her mother is English and her paternal grandfather was a "staunch

Fine Gael Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil � ...

activist". She joined Sinn Féin during a dispute over plans to build an

anaerobic digestion Anaerobic digestion is a sequence of processes by which microorganisms break down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen. The process is used for industrial or domestic purposes to manage waste or to produce fuels. Much of the ferm ...

plant in her area, when she became involved in an action group against the project. Kerrane joined Ogra Sinn Féin at the age of 15 and was a leading Sinn Féin organiser at

NUI Galway The University of Galway ( ga, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe) is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. A tertiary education and research institution, the university was awarded the full five QS stars for excellence in 201 ...

during her time as a university student there studying English, Sociology and Politics. She was still a student at NUIG when she became a parliamentary assistant to Independent TD

Luke 'Ming' Flanagan Luke 'Ming' Flanagan (born 22 January 1972) is an Irish politician who has been a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Ireland for the Midlands–North-West constituency since 2014. He is an Independent, but sits in parliament with The ...

upon his election to the Dáil in the

2011 Irish general election The 2011 Irish general election took place on Friday 25 February to elect 166 Teachtaí Dála across 43 constituencies to Dáil Éireann, the lower house of Ireland's parliament, the Oireachtas. The Dáil was dissolved and the general electi ...

. Later she became a political adviser on social protection for Sinn Féin in

Leinster House Leinster House ( ga, Teach Laighean) is the seat of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Ireland. Originally, it was the ducal palace of the Dukes of Leinster. Since 1922, it is a complex of buildings, of which the former ducal palace is the core, ...

. Flanagan endorsed her as a candidate at the 2020 general election. In 2016 Kerrane qualified as a secondary school teacher.

References

External links

Sinn Féin profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerrane, Claire 1992 births Living people Alumni of the University of Galway Members of the 33rd Dáil 21st-century women Teachtaí Dála Sinn Féin TDs (post-1923) Politicians from County Roscommon