In August 2024 a dispute broke out within Sinn Féin's Clare branch over the selection of the party's candidate for the 2024 general election.[4] Shannon-based McGettigan was nominated after meeting the required nominations, but two local cumainn, East Clare and North Clare, wrote to party leader Mary Lou McDonald requesting a reconsideration, as they had nominated Noeleen Moran. Sinn Féin's rules required a candidate to secure nominations from both a cumann and another party body, such as the Munster Cúige or Ard Comhairle. Moran failed to receive the necessary second nomination, which led to her disqualification and claims that the process had been "predetermined" and that local Clare members were excluded from the decision. The chairs of the two cumainn criticised the lack of transparency and fairness in the process, suggesting that any qualifying member should have been allowed to contest the convention. They also highlighted issues from the 2020 election, where Violet-Anne Wynne left the party after mistreatment. Sinn Féin defended the process, stating it adhered to party rules, while both McGettigan and Moran declined to comment.[4]
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