Fintan Warfield (born 1992) is an Irish former

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

politician who served as a

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

for the

Cultural and Educational Panel Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, attitudes, and habits of the individuals in these gr ...

from April 2016 to January 2025.

Early life and education

Warfield attended St Mac Dara's Community College. He was a Gaelic footballer for St Jude's, a sport he has also played with Dublin Devils F.C., as well as being a supporter of St Patrick's Athletic. At 17, Warfield moved to

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

where he graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in Film & Television from Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT) in 2012. He moved back to Dublin upon graduation.

Career

Warfield was the Mayor of

South Dublin County Council South Dublin County Council () is the local authority of the county of South Dublin, Ireland. It is one of three local authorities created by the Local Government (Dublin) Act 1993 to succeed the former Dublin County Council before its abolitio ...

from 2014 to 2015, and is an openly gay LGBT activist. He donated 10% of his mayoral salary to a women's refuge, LGBT group BeLonG To and Citywise (known for providing youths with educational support in Jobstown). Warfield was the first senator elected in the 2016 Seanad election, topping the poll on the

on 25 April 2016. He also won the most first preference votes of any candidate contesting the five vocational panel elections. As a senator, he tabled two legislative bills: the Electoral (Amendment) (Voting at 16) Bill 2016, which aimed to lower the voting age to sixteen in local and European elections; and the Gender Recognition (Amendment) Bill 2017, which aimed to give gender identity rights to

non-binary Non-binary or genderqueer Gender identity, gender identities are those that are outside the male/female gender binary. Non-binary identities often fall under the transgender umbrella since non-binary people typically identify with a gende ...

and

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

young people. He was the Sinn Féin Seanad spokesperson on youth affairs, LGBT rights and the arts. On 31 March 2020, Warfield was re-elected at the 2020 Seanad election. In July 2020, Warfield made reports to the

Garda Síochána (; meaning "the Guardian(s) of the Peace") is the national police and security service of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is more commonly referred to as the Gardaí (; "Guardians") or "the Guards". The service is headed by the Garda Commissio ...

following escalating online and offline homophobic harassment and abuse that started to extend to threats against members of his family. This came after he had made a speech in the Seanad in support of

transgender rights The legal status of transgender people varies greatly around the world. Some countries have enacted laws protecting the rights of transgender individuals, but others have criminalized their gender identity or expression. In many cases, transg ...

, but also in the same time period as an extended bout of harassment against

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

Roderic O'Gorman Roderic O'Gorman (born 12 December 1981) is an Irish Green Party politician who has served as leader of the Green Party since July 2024. He has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin West constituency since 2020. He previously served as Mini ...

, who is also openly gay. He did not contest the 2025 Seanad election, in order to pursue music full time.

Personal life

A former full-time musician, he plays guitar and sings. He is a cousin of

Derek Warfield Derek Warfield (born 15 September 1943) is an Irish singer, songwriter, historian, and a former member of the musical group The Wolfe Tones. Personal life Born in the Dublin suburb Inchicore, Warfield was educated at Synge Street CBS. He was ...

and

Brian Warfield Patrick Brian Warfield (born 2 April 1946, Holles Street, Dublin) is the vocalist, banjo, harp and bodhrán player and lead songwriter with long-standing Irish band The Wolfe Tones. Brian introduces many of the songs at the Wolfe Tones live con ...

(musicians with

The Wolfe Tones The Wolfe Tones are an Irish rebel music band that incorporate Irish traditional music in their songs. Formed in 1963, they take their name from Theobald Wolfe Tone, one of the leaders of the Irish Rebellion of 1798, with the double meaning ...

) and performed with them, touring in the United States. He is on the board of the Civic Theatre.

References

External links

Fintan Warfield's page on the Sinn Féin website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Warfield, Fintan 1992 births Living people Alumni of Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology Gay singers Irish gay politicians Irish folk singers Irish male guitarists Irish LGBTQ singers Irish gay musicians LGBTQ legislators in Ireland LGBTQ mayors Members of South Dublin County Council Mayors of places in the Republic of Ireland Members of the 25th Seanad Members of the 26th Seanad Sinn Féin senators St Jude's Gaelic footballers 21st-century Irish guitarists 21st-century Irish male singers 21st-century Irish LGBTQ people Sinn Féin local councillors in the Republic of Ireland Cultural and Educational Panel senators