With local elections taking place later this year, a female Monaghan County Councillor says social media trolling and abuse is putting off many women from considering a career in politics. Aoife McCooey said the salary paid to local councillors does little to entice people into the job as well. Discussing the upcoming elections on the Joe Finnegan Show, the Fianna Fáil councillor said the "representation of women in politics is pretty pathetic across the country, not just in Monaghan."
She said the fact social media plays such a huge part in politics today, is putting women off. The fear and hate pedalled online stops women putting themselves forward for a public role, Aoife McCooey said. The councillor also said when she joined Monaghan County Council over four years ago, she could've earned more in her minimum-wage job at the time than the 17 and half thousand euro salary local politics offered.
"It's becoming increasingly difficult to entice women into politics and to see that as a viable career option for them, or even be willing to go for" Cllr McCooey said, "because in this day and age social media plays a huge part in politics and the more fear, the more hate we see online, the more likely [it is] that women will see that as something that they don't want to put themselves forward for."
