In reply to girlymonkey:
> My view of Sinn Féin has maybe been tainted by the British press and how they are portrayed to us. So, are they just a left wing party or do they still have terrorist links? Sounds like the other larger Irish parties aren't keen on them.
Both are true.
I have a lot of misgivings about them and wouldn't vote for them.
They do still have links to the IRA but the IRA aren't active, there is a ceasefire in place.
If you take their policies on face value and are left wing then you would be inclined to vote for them. Many people just have , especially younger people who don't remember the horrors of "The Troubles"
I personally don't think they are ready to come in from the cold but feel a bit conflicted because we should be glad that they have turned away from armed conflict and at some stage have to acknowledge that they are a legitimate political party.
You're right the the main parties aren't keen on them, with good reason as the IRA were an illegal paramilitary force here south of the border very recently as well.
People have voted left, not just Sinn Fein but the Greens , People Before Profit, and the Social Democrats have all done well.
They, Sinn Feinn, do not have enough seats to form a government on their own as they didn't stand in all constituencies but they have earned the right to have a say in the next government.
It'll be interesting to see how it pans out.
One thing I am glad about is the utter failure of the right wing parties to gain any traction at all.
