The ‘Muhammad Ali of politics’ celebrated in Westport Town Hall

It was a call to the house from Patrick Durcan, Jackie Gibbons and John Mayock that would mark the start of Michael Ring’s political career in 1979.

They asked him to stand for the urban council and his initial response was ‘no, no, no.’

The future poll topper’s 216 votes on the day won him his first seat on Westport Town Council. He would go on to represent Mayo in Dáil Éireann for 30 years.

On Friday evening last, a special civic reception in Westport Town Hall Theatre was held to celebrate what turned into a 45 year political career.

Tears came to Michael Ring’s eyes as he saw all the people who had arrived and he said:

“To be honoured when you're alive is wonderful. And I really mean it. It's a great honour.”

Breaking the divide

His brothers Joe and Ronnie point to his ability to break the traditional political divide as key to his 1994 by-election victory, when “the odds were so stacked against us and to take on the might of Europe at the time.”

“When we started off here, Westport would have been a predominantly Fianna Fáil town. There was never a vote in this town for a TD. And Michael broke the divide and I don’t know if that can happen again,” Joe Ring recalls.

“They weren’t Fine Gael or Fianna Fáil people, they were Michael Ring people”, Ronnie Ring concurs.

Fine Gael grandee Jim Higgins said: “There will never be another Michael Ring, because he had something that's indefinable, and we call it the X Factor. Nobody knows what it is, but it was based on dedication, hard work, commitment and a persona that everybody loved.”

Delivering the Lough Mask to Westport Water Scheme is a career highlight and Ring recounts issuing an ultimatum to the then Taoiseach in order to secure it: “I went to John Bruton, and I told him I wouldn't be able to stand again if I didn't get this one.”

He is also proud that “there's more people working and living in rural Ireland now than there ever has been since the foundation of the state. And long may it last.”

Another career highlight was his elevation to Minister for Rural and Community Development: “ I said to myself, for somebody from Father Angeles Park to get to the cabinet table was a great honour.”

Legacy

Patrick Durcan was there from the very beginning and reflects that Ring “served this county extremely well, and his legacy is visible everywhere you go, every parish, every town, every place you go to in County Mayo, you'll see part of the legacy of Michael Ring.”

Cllr Peter Flynn, Cathaoirleach of the Westport/Belmullet Municipal District, observed that many of the attendees would have travelled from Castlebar, Newport and further afield on the N5 road: “None of this would have been possible without the intervention of Michael along the way.”

Michael Ring is “a leader who never forgot where he came from and never let the country forget either,” Joanne Greahan, Director of Services, for the Westport Belmullet Municipal District, remarked, leading to a big laugh from the crowd.

“The Muhammad Ali of politics. That's what he is, the greatest. When the history books of Mayo politics will be written about in years to come, the name of Michael Ring will be spoken about reverence and respect for he is and will always be remembered as one of the greats,” longtime party colleague Cllr Gerry Coyle predicts.

Westport TD Keira Keogh said: “His legacy is all around, all around in the projects that we can see he helped get developed. He loves to see the vibrancy within a rural area, and know that he contributed to that.”

“Michael's energy is probably one of his key assets. The large attendance here tonight is real recognition of all he's delivered to the town of Westport to Mayo at large,” said Minister of State, Alan Dillon.

Family man

“I love that granddad can come to all my football matches”, eight year old Luke Bourke told The Mayo News.

The sports-mad grandfather lights up talking about his grandchildren and Rory, Lisa, Ben and Luke are arguably the big winners from his retirement.

He jokes that he hates when Westport and Ballintubber are playing. It puts him in an awful spot as he has grandchildren playing for both sides.

Although officially retired, people continue to seek his help and while he is passing on some to Keira Keogh TD, he “won’t ever turn away anybody.”

Reflecting on his 45 years in politics, he concludes: “What gave me the greatest pleasure is being elected by the people and doing the clinics and meeting people and representing them.”