Fianna Fáil general election candidate Catherine Ardagh says having a reliable team of 'babysitters and canvassers' has allowed her to campaign while also caring for her newborn baby sons.
Senator Ardagh gave birth to twins - Darragh Óg and Seán - just over a month ago, on December 29th.
The general election, meanwhile, was called on January 14th - meaning the Fianna Fáil politician had to start balancing caring for two newborns while dealing with the demands of the campaign trail.
Newstalk's Susan Keogh spoke to Senator Ardagh for the Pat Kenny Show.
The Dublin South-Central candidate explained: "The timing wasn't ideal, but sure what's meant to be will be and I have great support.
"I'm able to keep going, and I've worked very hard over the last four years."
She explained that she has a "great crew of babysitters and minders and canvassers and volunteers", which has helped her balance her time between caring for her new babies and campaigning for a Dáil seat.
'Pretty much a blur'
Discussing those first few days and weeks after giving birth, she observed: "It's all pretty much a blur to me - and I think that's the same way for a lot of new parents.
"I think we had a week where we weren't really thinking about elections, and I think it was a week into the boys' lives that an election was sprung on them."
For now, Senator Ardagh says everyone's sticking to a "regimented routine".
She explained: "We're very much into timetables - scheduling minders, scheduling my time with the boys, scheduling canvassing times.
"We're running two timetables side-by-side for the next few weeks. They're obviously very small, tiny babies - so they require a lot of minding."
"Hopefully once the election's over, myself and my husband might get our paternity and maternity leave for at least a week or two."
Catherine Ardagh has responded to a tweet asking her to be ‘straight up’ about her plans for maternity leave. A good example of how when your opponents go low, you should always always go high 🙋♀️ #GE2020 pic.twitter.com/LrC3Gqt2hc
— Susan Keogh (@susankeoghnews) January 30, 2020
Speaking about her response to online criticism, Senator Ardagh observed: "Out of 100 comments, I might have five negative comments... where people were like 'you should be home with your children'. Ultimately I think people are very supportive.
"You have to realise social media is social media... I advise any candidate in this election not to take anything on social media too seriously. You look at your friends, your families and your colleagues - if they all love you and respect you, that's what's important."
