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Eoin Hayes

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Eoin Hayes
TD
Hayes in 2024
Teachta Dála
Incumbent
Assumed office
November 2024
ConstituencyDublin Bay South
Personal details
Born (1987-10-15) 15 October 1987 (age 37)
Limerick, Ireland
Political partySocial Democrats (suspended)[1]
Alma mater

Eoin Hayes (born 15 October 1987) is an Irish independent politician, formerly Social Democrats, who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin Bay South constituency since the 2024 general election.[2] Hayes served as a member of Dublin City Council from June 2024 until his election to the Dáil.[3]

Early life and education

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Hayes was born in Limerick, Ireland. At age six, he moved to Williamsport, Pennsylvania with his family.[4] They returned to Limerick when Hayes was 14, and he completed his Leaving Certificate at Castletroy College.

He studied chemical engineering at University College Cork, after which he completed an MSc in Management at London Business School of the University of London.

Business career

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Hayes was an intern at Google in 2011[5] and worked in management consulting in New York City with a boutique firm, the Alexander Group, in 2013.[4] From 2015 to 2017, he worked for the software company Palantir Technologies.[4][6]

On returning to Dublin in 2017, Hayes founded a consulting firm, Cantillon Labs, which he has led since.[7][4] Hayes is a small business owner,[7][8] and has been a political campaigner since 2009.[9][original research?]

Political career

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Hayes was elected as president of the Students' Union at University College Cork in 2009.[10] He was active in protesting against the re-introduction of student fees by the government of Fianna Fáil and the Green Party.[11] He was also active in opposing additional fees on students, including printing fees and graduation fees.[9][12]

In 2012, he campaigned for and was employed by the Barack Obama’s re-election campaign as a Political Deputy in the Data team at the headquarters in Chicago.[13][10]

At the 2024 Dublin City Council election, he was elected for the local electoral area of Kimmage–Rathmines.[14]

In July 2024, the Social Democrats selected Hayes as their candidate in the constituency of Dublin Bay South.[15][16] At the 2024 general election, he was elected to the Dáil, defeating Chris Andrews to win the fourth and final seat available in the constituency.[2]

Suspension from the Social Democrats

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During his employment with Palantir Technologies, Hayes received 7,000 shares in the company, which supplies artificial intelligence tools to the Israel Defense Forces.[17] At a press conference on 10 December 2024, Hayes claimed that he had disposed of his Palantir shares before entering electoral politics. However, he acknowledged later that day that he had sold the shares for €199,000 on 26 July 2024, more than a month after his election to Dublin City Council.[18] In a statement, Hayes said: "I unreservedly apologise for providing incorrect information and I am now correcting the record".[17]

The Social Democrats suspended Hayes from the parliamentary party with immediate effect,[1] with deputy leader Cian O'Callaghan stating: "This is a serious matter. It is imperative that the media, who hold politicians to account on behalf of the public, can rely on the information they receive from elected representatives."[17] Hayes sat as an independent when the 34th Dáil met for the first time on 18 December.[19][17]

Hayes's admission also drew criticism from other parties. Sinn Féin director of elections Matt Carthy said: "Had this information been in the public domain [prior to the 2024 general election], it is my very firm belief that Eoin Hayes would not be a TD, and that [Sinn Féin candidate] Chris Andrews would have been re-elected." Claiming that Hayes had "won his seat on false pretences", Carthy called for his resignation.[18] People Before Profit–Solidarity leader Richard Boyd Barrett accused Hayes of "profiting from genocide."[18]

On 13 December, the Social Democrats' head office near the Dáil was evacuated after staff reported receiving a suspicious package addressed to Hayes. A number of companies located in the same building were also evacuated. However, an investigation by the army's bomb disposal unit found that the package contained no explosive material, and the Gardaí determined that the threat was not credible.[20][21]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Eoin Hayes suspended from Social Democrats after revealing he sold Palantir shares after council election". Breakingnews.ie. 10 December 2024. Retrieved 10 December 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Dublin South Bay 2024 election results". RTÉ News. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  3. ^ "Councillor details - Councillor Eoin Hayes". Dublin City Council. 7 November 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d "Meet the man who wants to bring Silicon Valley nous to the Irish startup scene". Fora.ie. 20 September 2019.
  5. ^ "My BOLDest summer yet: A recap from the frontlines of a Google internship" – via blogspot.com.[better source needed]
  6. ^ Hughes, Craig (5 December 2024). "Social Democrats TD Eoin Hayes worked for Israeli army software suppliers". Extra.ie.
  7. ^ a b "Cantillon Labs: a start-up to help start-ups". Business Post.
  8. ^ Finnerty, Mike (6 August 2024). "Hayes joins ballot in star-studded Dublin Bay South". dublinpeople.com.
  9. ^ a b Murray, Niall (8 October 2009). "Students protest extra conferring charge". Irish Examiner.
  10. ^ a b "Mr. Hayes goes to Washington". University College Cork.
  11. ^ "Cork students protest over fees". The Irish Times.
  12. ^ "UCC to charge €65 for conferring ceremonies". RTÉ News. 7 April 2010.
  13. ^ "Obama for America 2012 Campaign Organization". www.p2012.org.
  14. ^ "Local Elections 2024 News". Dublin City Council. 6 October 2024.
  15. ^ "Cllr Eoin Hayes selected as Soc Dems' Dublin Bay South general election candidate". Social Democrats (Press release). 30 July 2024.
  16. ^ "Eoin Hayes". Social Democrats.
  17. ^ a b c d Hurley, Sandra (11 December 2024). "Eoin Hayes to sit as independent after suspension by Social Democrats". RTE News. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  18. ^ a b c Molony, Senan; Ó Broin, Cian (10 December 2024). "'I let myself and the party down': Suspended Soc Dems TD Eoin Hayes says he will take his seat in Dáil as Independent". Irish Independent. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  19. ^ McGee, Harry (11 December 2024). "Eoin Hayes returns part of €2,500 donation received as part of general election GoFundMe campaign". The Irish Times. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
  20. ^ Ó Cionnaith, Fiachra (13 December 2024). "Alert over package sent to Soc Dems office 'not credible' - gardaí". RTE News. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  21. ^ Finn, Christina (13 December 2024). "Suspicious package sent to Social Democrats HQ in Dublin found not credible, say gardaí". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
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