Fintan A. Coogan (born 2 June 1944) is an Irish former

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 � ...

politician from

Galway Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...

. He was 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 five years, a senator for five years, and was twice

Mayor of Galway The office of Mayor of Galway is an honorific title used by the of Galway City Council. The council has jurisdiction throughout its administrative area of the city of Galway which is the largest city in the province of Connacht, in Ireland. The ...

Early and personal life

The son of

Fintan Coogan Snr Fintan Coogan (13 April 1910 – 4 November 1984) was an Irish Fine Gael politician. A blacksmith before entering politics, he was a Teachta Dála (TD) for over twenty years, and served three times as Mayor of Galway. Coogan unsuccessfully conte ...

, a long-serving TD and councillor, Coogan was educated at St. Joseph's Secondary School in Galway and graduated from

University College 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 ...

with a BA degree and a H.Dip.Ed. A lecturer in

behavioural sciences Behavioral sciences explore the cognitive processes within organisms and the behavioral interactions between organisms in the natural world. It involves the systematic analysis and investigation of human and animal behavior through naturalistic o ...

at the

Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology The Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT; ga, Institúid Teicneolaíochta na Gaillimhe-Maigh Eo) was an institute of technology, located in Galway, Ireland. In April 2022, it was formally dissolved, and its functions were transferred to ...

, he has also served on the boards of

Galway Airport Galway Airport ( gle, Aerphort na Gaillimhe), , is located at Carnmore, east of Galway City, County Galway, Ireland and is managed by ''Corrib Airport Limited''. It has not serviced any scheduled passenger traffic since 31 October 2011, when ...

and of the Great Southern Hotels Group. He is married with three daughters and one son.

Political career

Coogan followed his father into politics, becoming a member of

Galway County Council Galway County Council ( ga, Comhairle Chontae na Gaillimhe) is the authority responsible for local government in County Galway, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housin ...

and

Galway City Council Galway City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach na Gaillimhe) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Galway, Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for hou ...

, and when his father died in 1984 he was appointed to succeed him as a member of the Western Health Board. Coogan unsuccessfully sought election to

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland read ...

in the February 1982 general election for the Galway West constituency, failing to regain the seat previously held by his father. However he succeeded at the November 1982 general election, giving Fine Gael a rare second seat in Galway West. He was defeated at the 1987 general election by

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

candidate

Michael D. Higgins Michael Daniel Higgins ( ga, Mícheál Dónal Ó hUigínn; born 18 April 1941) is an Irish politician, poet, sociologist, and broadcaster, who has served as the ninth president of Ireland since November 2011. Entering national politics throug ...

, whom he had ousted in 1982. He stood again at the

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

and

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

general elections, but never returned to the Dáil. In 1997 he was elected to the 21st Seanad on the

Administrative Panel The Administrative Panel () is one of five vocational panels which together elect 43 of the 60 members of Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (the legislature of Ireland). The Administrative Panel elects seven senators. Election ...

, but was defeated at the 2002 election to the 22nd Seanad. Fine Gael had suffered heavy losses at the 2002 general election, and the party chose to prioritise younger politicians who appeared to be strong candidates for the next election to the Dáil. Coogan was mayor of

city from 1988 to 1989, and 1994 to 1995. He remained a city councillor until his defeat at the 2004 local elections. At the 1999 local elections he was not selected as a candidate by his local party, was imposed by the party's national executive, and held his council seat with a majority of just two votes over his

Progressive Democrats The Progressive Democrats ( ga, An Páirtí Daonlathach, literally "The Democratic Party" ), commonly referred to as the PDs, was a conservative-liberal political party in the Republic of Ireland. Launched on 21 December 1985 by Desmond O'Mal ...

opponent, fish wholesaler Gary Creaven. The recounts extended over two nights, and when his victory was confirmed Coogan said "On the third day, he rose again", prompting ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' to write an article about him under the headline "City's Lazarus claims resurrection status as he defeats provider of fish". In a January 2008 comparison of the council elected in 2004 with its predecessor, the local ''

Galway Advertiser The ''Galway Advertiser'' is a free newspaper distributed throughout Galway city and county each Thursday. It was the first of the regional newspapers under the "Advertiser" banner, which now also includes publications based in Athlone and Mayo ...

'' newspaper gave Coogan a rating of 5 out of 10, noting that "at times he made good contributions but frequently appeared uninterested".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coogan, Fintan Jnr 1944 births Living people Alumni of the University of Galway Fine Gael TDs Members of the 24th Dáil Members of the 21st Seanad Mayors of Galway Members of Galway City Council Politicians from County Galway Fine Gael senators Alumni of Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology Administrative Panel senators

Early and personal life

Political career

See also

References