2011 Irish presidential election "foisted on him and he had not known anything about it and what it would involve". This followed unease among Fianna Fáil parliamentary party Oireachtas members, with a number unhappy that a candidate was being imposed by the leadership without discussion. On 16 August 2011, the "Irish Examiner" reported that Micheál Martin had moved to pull the party out of the presidential race over the fallout from the approach to Gay Byrne, the cost involved and the slim chance of a candidate being elected. On 24 August, however, the party's deputy leader Éamon Ó Cuív told Raidió na Gaeltachta that
2011 Irish presidential election office of the incumbent, or within 60 days of the office becoming vacant. On 27 July the government announced that the election would be held on 27 October 2011. An order was made on 30 August by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government declaring 28 September to be the last day on which nominations could be received. The election was conducted by means of the alternative vote (also called instant runoff voting), which is the single-winner analogue of the single transferable vote used in other Irish elections. Although the constitution calls the system "proportional representation by means