Emma Blain is an Irish

Fine Gael Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...

politician and former journalist who has served as

Lord Mayor of Dublin The Lord Mayor of Dublin () is the honorary title of the chairperson ( ) of Dublin City Council which is the local government body for the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. The incumbent, since December 2024, is Fine Gael councillor Emma ...

since December 2024. She has been a member of

Dublin City Council Dublin City Council () is the Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authority of the city of Dublin in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the authority was k ...

for the Pembroke

local electoral area A local electoral area (LEA; ) is an electoral area for elections to Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authorities in Ireland. All elections in the Republic of Ireland, elections use the single transferable vote. Republic of Ir ...

since 2024. She succeeded James Geoghegan as Lord Mayor of Dublin after his election to Dáil Eireann.

Journalism

Blain was the editor of ''

The Church of Ireland Gazette ''The Church of Ireland Gazette'' is a monthly magazine promoting the Christian faith, and covers the activities of the Church of Ireland across all its dioceses in Ireland (North and South). Although associated with the Church of Ireland (Angli ...

'' from 2020 to 2024, and was previously employed by both the '' Sunday Independent'' and '' The Herald'' newspapers. During the

Celtic Tiger The "Celtic Tiger" () is a term referring to the economy of the Republic of Ireland, economy of Ireland from the mid-1990s to the late 2000s, a period of rapid real economic growth fuelled by foreign direct investment. The boom was dampened by ...

she was in her own words "a form of

influencer A social media influencer, or simply influencer (also known as an online influencer), is a person who builds a grassroots online presence through engaging content such as photos, videos, and updates. This is done by using direct audience intera ...

" as an O3 Girl at the ''Sunday Independent''. An "O3 girl" was a young female journalist featured in the Sunday Independent during the early 2000s, who contributed short opinion columns accompanied by posed, often provocative photographs. The initiative was framed as a blend of light commentary and glamour, but was criticised by some as objectifying women in journalism.

Politics

Blain was previously a member of

Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council () is the local authority of the county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Ireland. It is one of three local authorities that succeeded the former Dublin County Council on its abolition on 1 January 1994 a ...

for the Glencullen-Sandyford area from 2016 to 2024. She was co-opted onto Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council when

Neale Richmond Neale Richmond (born 15 March 1983) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Minister of State since 2023. He has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin Rathdown constituency since the 2020 general election. He previously served as ...

was elected to

Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann ( ; ; "Senate of Ireland") is the senate of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (defined as the house of representatives). It is commonly called the Seanad or ...

in April 2016. She was an unsuccessful candidate for the

Industrial and Commercial Panel Industrial may refer to: Industry * Industrial archaeology, the study of the history of the industry * Industrial engineering, engineering dealing with the optimization of complex industrial processes or systems * Industrial city, a city dominat ...

at the

2020 Seanad election An indirect election to the 26th Seanad took place after the 2020 Irish general election, with postal ballots due on 30 and 31 March. Seanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas, with Dáil Éireann as the lower house of representative ...

. Blain ran unsuccessfully as a candidate for the Dublin Bay South constituency at the

2024 general election This is a list of elections that were held in 2024. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2024 United Nations Security Council election * 2024 national electoral calendar * 2024 local electo ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blain, Emma Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Members of Dublin City Council Lord mayors of Dublin Politicians from Dublin (city) Fine Gael local councillors Alumni of University College Dublin Fine Gael candidates in Dáil elections Members of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown Council 21st-century Irish women politicians 21st-century Irish women journalists