CLG An Tearmainn (Termon GAA) in Co Donegal has extended well wishes to Nicole Shanahan, the tech entrepreneur from California who invested €500k in the GAA club and has been announced as Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s running mate for the 2024 US Presidential election.
“The club continue to be grateful for the donation from Ms. Shanahan and the new clubhouse is on schedule to be completed in 2024,” Daireann Gibson, Chairperson of CLG An Tearmainn, told IrishCentral on Tuesday.
“It will provide an essential community space and help the club continue to grow and provide GAA games for everyone in the community.
“The club wishes Ms. Shanahan well with her upcoming political campaign and ambitions.”
Shanahan, who was announced as RFK Jr's running mate on March 26, has Irish roots and invested €500k into CLG An Tearmainn in 2020 as part of an investment visa scheme that was facilitated by Irish law firm Gibson & Associates.
The investor visa, Gibson & Associates said at the time, allowed Shanahan to "establish a connection and residency in Ireland."
Shanahan availed of Ireland's Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP), which has since been wound up.
Speaking at the time of her Irish investment, Shanahan said she aligns with “culture and leadership that is refreshingly progressive in a way that is compatible with my own values.
"I am someone that believes in science and service to the community through work and charity.
"I’m very much attracted to the rising thought leadership in Ireland, especially as it relates to social policy, education, and the environment."
Gibson, who is also the managing partner at Gibson & Associates, said at the time: “It has been a real pleasure to create the link between Nicole and CLG An Tearmainn.
"There is a great team of volunteers at the club, who have worked tirelessly to develop the club and uphold the core values of the GAA, which is completely aligned with Nicole’s own values.
"This extraordinary generosity will have a profound impact on the club and the community that it serves, and really couldn’t come at a better time.”
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, the son of Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of John F. Kennedy, launched his presidential campaign in April 2023. Initially running as a Democrat, he announced in October that he would be running as an Independent.
The Kennedy campaign says its key principles are "restoring the middle class, ending the chronic disease epidemic, unwinding the war machine, and unraveling corporate capture of our government agencies."
Last year, FactCheck.org said that Kennedy Jr "spread false and misleading health claims" and also "promotes conspiracy theories."
Shanahan was announced as Kennedy Jr's running mate during an event in Oakland, California on March 26.
Speaking during the announcement event, Shanahan said: "My mother ... immigrated from Guangzhou, China, and my late father was an Irish and German American."
Kennedy Jr told Newsweek that his inner circle of 17 people had been referring to Shanahan by the code name "The Irishman" to avoid any leaks ahead of the official announcement.
(The Kennedy family, of course, have their own Irish roots which can be traced back to Co Wexford as well as Cos Limerick, Clare, Cork, and Fermanagh.)
According to The Hill on Tuesday evening, Kennedy Jr (9.6%) trails both Trump (41.8%) and Biden (39.5%) significantly in the polls.
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