Irish democratic party announces offaly candidate

The Irish Democratic Party(IDP) has selected Tullamore native Ken Smollen as its candidate for the Offaly constituency in the General Election.

Originally from Tullamore and now living in Clara, Ken is a retired member of an Garda Siochana having served 30 years in Tallaght, Dublin, Edenderry and Portlaoise.  Married to Sandy, they have two daughters and three small grandsons.

A spokesperson from the IDP said that it will be the first time that a candidate has stood for election for a political party which was founded in Co Offaly.

The IDP was officially launched in Tullamore in October 2014 and now has over 200 signed up members in Offaly and over 1,000 members nationwide.

Another candidate was selected to contest the General Election for the IDP last Friday.  Mark Keogh will contest the election in his native Limerick County Constituency. Candidates in other constituencies are expected to be announced within the next few weeks.