Mullooly started his career with the Longford Leader in 1985, before moving to the Cavan Leader newspaper aged 20.[1] He joined RTÉ in 1993,[2] where he worked on Ear to the Ground, and was the RTÉ News Midlands correspondent from 1995 until 2021.[3][4][5]
After retiring from RTÉ in June 2021, he worked as a tourism activator for Longford County Council.[6][7][8] Mullooly is a published author and has written three books.[9]
Mullooly had been courted by Ireland's establishment parties "for decades" to run for office, however, he always refused to run.[10]
In April 2024, Mullooly announced his intention to run for Independent Ireland at the 2024 European Parliament election for the Midlands–North-West constituency.[11] In his announcement Mullooly stated that "Common sense must prevail. The political system has failed this community" (the Midlands) specifically citing the environmentalist group, Friends of the Irish Environment, successfully blocking a flood relief pipeline and the damage this has caused the Midlands, as a fundamental draconian failure of European policy and guidelines.[12] Despite the right-wing rhetoric of Independent Ireland, Mullooly stated that "I would have said that I was a centrist" and took soft positions on energy, SMEs, and migration.[13]
Mullooly was heavily criticised by his Social Democrats opponent, Rory Hearne, as a "hypocrite" for supporting community values while also running for a party that opposes immigration.[14] Hearne also claimed Mullooly had "no solutions" and further criticised Mullooly for not opposing landlords.[14] Mullooly "utterly reject[ed]" Hearne's claims, stating that "I support the right of those fleeing conflict and oppression to seek asylum here but feel our present system is not fit for purpose".[14] Mullooly ran a grassroots campaign, with a staff of just 20, answering phone calls himself and running his staff like an RTÉ newsroom.[15][10] Mullooly centered his criticism on the Green Party stating that "We all agree with the transition" (to renewable energy) but "that the transition hasn't worked out".[10] Mullooly also focused on agricultural issues, such as supporting the use of nitrogen fertilisers.[16] Mullooly was not included in RTÉ's European election TV debate, after which he heavily criticised RTÉ, claiming it willfully ignored opinion polls that qualified him and that his exclusion was politically based.[17]
Mullooly was elected as an MEP, taking the fifth seat in Midlands–North-West.[18][19] Mullooly performed particularly well in County Offaly.[20]
He took office on 17 July 2024, joining the European Democratic Party and sitting with the Renew Europe parliamentary group.[21] Mullooly's decision to join Renew attracted significant criticism,[22] with fellow candidate Niall Boylan stating he would have joined the European Conservatives and Reformists if elected.[23] Independent Ireland chair Elaine Mullally, who resigned her position shortly after Mullooly joined Renew, later said that it had been the "catalyst" for her to leave.[24][25][26]
^Scott, Claire; O'Connell, Hugh (13 July 2024). "Renew wasn't Mullooly's first choice in Brussels". The Times & The Sunday Times. Retrieved 27 September 2024. Despite attracting significant criticism for effectively throwing his lot in with Fianna Fail after running on a "common sense" platform, Mullooly's party defended his decision in an extraordinary nearly 2,500-word statement issued on Wednesday.
