Following days of speculation TD Brendan Griffin has now confirmed that he will not contest the General Election.
he Kerry TD sent a letter to party members and councillors over the weekend citing that he will not be contesting the election and he confirmed on Radio Kerry this morning that he would definitely not run .
He said that the job meant he was away from his family a lot of the time and that he has decided to not run again to spend time with his family.
Last week he refused to comment on the speculation but he is now confirmed that he will not run sparking a county-wide debate on who will replace him on a general election ticket. Last time Cllr Mike Kennelly ran alongside Brendan Griffin on the ticket.
Mr Griffin turned down an appointment as Minister of State last month, though he could have chosen his portfolio. He said that remaining in politics would mean too much time away from his family.
The youngest TD in the county, the Fine Gael TD was first elected in 2011 in the then Kerry South constituency and has retained his seat in every election since.
