A Fianna Fáil local election candidate is seeking votes from the Chinese community in his Dublin constituency by translating some of his campaign literature into Mandarin.
Mr David Gaynor (36) has delivered letters to Chinese businesses in the Crumlin-Kimmage ward seeking the support of their staff in the election.
While he does not know how many Chinese people live in the ward embracing Drimnagh, Walkinstown, Harold's Cross and Terenure, it is thought some 35,000-40,000 Chinese people live in the city at large.
With about 100,000 EU and non-EU foreign workers living in the Republic, Mr Gaynor's efforts indicate that the biggest party in the State is beginning to tap the non-national electorate for votes.
In what is perhaps the first effort by Fianna Fáil to court the Chinese vote, Mr Gaynor arranged through a friend to have the core message of his campaign translated into Mandarin.
"As your local representative, I am working to achieve assimilation between the Chinese community and the Irish community in the city," he said.
Mr Gaynor wanted "to make contacts between Chinese businesses and businesses hoping to operate in China", to encourage Chinese culture, and increase the profile of Chinese people in the city.
In his letter to every Chinese restaurant and take-away in the ward, Mr Gaynor said that foreign workers registered to work by the Government were entitled to put their names on the register of electors for the local election.
He said yesterday that his efforts were meant as a gesture of goodwill towards the Chinese community. "Democracy-wise it's a good thing, whether they vote for me or not. Of course I'm looking for their votes, but it's important to let them know that they are part of the community."
A Fianna Fáil activist for years, this is his first election campaign.
