Michéal Martin Resigns From Brian Cowens Government In 2011

Tenacity is the most underrated quality in Irish politics.

In January 2011, the Irish political scene was marked by internal strife within Fianna Fáil, primarily centred around the leadership of Brian Cowen. On January 16, 2011, Cowen, throwing down the gauntlet, declared his intention not to resign voluntarily as the party leader. Instead, he proposed a motion of confidence in his leadership to be voted on by secret ballot at the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party meeting set for January 18, 2011. In what I like to call playing political chicken with your parliamentary party.

This move effectively turned the situation into a test of Cowen's support within the party ranks. Amidst this leadership challenge, Micheál Martin, the Foreign Affairs Minister at the time, publicly stated his intention to vote against Cowen in the confidence motion. What’s often forgotten is that Michéal Martin offered to resign as Minister for Foreign Affairs before the vote, but his resignation was initially refused by Cowen. Following the result of the motion, which C…