Billy Hillis, the Comeback Kid?

When Billy Hillis lost his Council seat in 2009, it seemed the end to a long Fine Gael local representative career where by general agreement he had served his community well, writes Brian Byrne.

He had fallen foul of a boundary change which switched Ballymore and some of the Kilcullen part of his voter base to the Athy Electoral Area. He had the choice of running either in Naas or Athy, and chose the latter, a new 4-seater. His run ended when the seats were filled by Mark Wall (Labour), Martin Miley Jr (FF), Martin Heydon (FG) and Richard Daly (FG), the latter kicked home without making the quota by a very good transfer of Billy's votes.

In choosing the Athy area, he had also enabled Anthony Lawlor to take a Naas Area Council seat for FG. When both Martin Heydon and Anthony Lawlor were elected to the Dail, in 2011, Ivan Keatley and Fintan Brett were co-opted to the Council in the respective areas.

At a Council level Billy Hillis has been Mayor of Kildare, and was a member of many key committees over his career. He was some years ago commended by former Fine Gael Leader Alan Dukes for his 'business and efficiency mentality' and his 'ability to get results'.

With his traditional base now back in place, he's running with current Naas Town Councillor Darren Scully, Cllr Fintan Brett and Jacinta O'Sullivan on the FG ticket for the Naas area.

Darren Scully has a strong base in Naas, and did very well as an FG candidate in Kildare North in the 2007 General Election. Many expect he will top the poll in May. Fintan Brett can gain well from the Anthony Lawlor machine in his own Johnstown area, and Jacinta O'Sullivan also has a strong Naas base and a high profile in voluntary work.

Billy Hillis will be very much depending on his traditional strongholds of Ballymore Eustace and fully reconstituted Kilcullen. But Kilcullen's population size and mix has changed significantly since he was last a councillor in the area, and he'll have to fight hard to gain recognition in some parts. Five years absence is a long time in local politics, and there are newcomers in the fray already making serious attempts to secure the Kilcullen vote.

Still, anyone who knows him also knows that he's a fighter, especially if it's against the odds. Not just in politics, as he successfully beat serious illness while still a Councillor, at the time never letting it interfere with his Council and community duties.

This is by way of being a scene-setter, and we'll be doing something similar about each candidate in the area. We will also be talking directly to the candidates over the coming weeks and months to try and tease out how they intend to deal with Kilcullen issues if elected.