Labour TD Seán Sherlock has said he is trying to decide if there is a future for him in politics after the publication of the constituency review by the Electoral Commission this week.
Mr Sherlock's home base of Mallow has been moved from Cork- East into Cork North-Central.
Speaking to Patricia Messinger on C103, the TD said: "The decision now is whether to run at all or run in Cork North-Central, I'd be very honest about that.
"I'm not being morose about these things and I'm not playing the beál bocht (poor mouth) because that's not the type of character I'd be.
"What I'm trying to grapple with at the moment is whether or not there is actually a future for me in politics."
He said that there is a "sense of loss" that the key parts of his constituency have been moved and he is now trying to come to terms with the enormity of the decision.
"Quite frankly, it feels like the years and years of work that my late father and myself have put in, is just literally gone in one fell swoop," Mr Sherlock said.
"I could never run in a constituency that I don't live in. I live in the town of Mallow. My family is in Mallow. I would have to stay with Mallow, no matter what."
Mr Sherlock who has been a Labour TD for Cork-East since 2007 said prior to the publication of the constituency review "the fire was still in the belly."
His father Joe Sherlock represented Cork-East from 1981 to 2007.
He was first elected as a TD for Sinn Féin the Workers Party before joining Democratic Left and laterally the Labour Party.
"What it would mean is you're literally starting out again, in a whole new territory where you're trying to form relationships, build up a body of work in such a short space of time," Mr Sherlock said.
"And that challenge is a massive undertaking."
He said he will consult his colleagues before making a decision.
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In particular he said he will talk to Councillor John Maher who was the Labour candidate in Cork North - Central in the last election as well as his family who are a big component of the decision.
He added that he does not know what he will do if he decides to leave politics.
"I haven't thought about what I would do if I was to leave politics," Mr Sherlock said.
"The only thought on my mind is I've to collect a little fella from the preschool after this call and then over the afternoon I have work ahead of me in terms of representing the people.
"So quite honestly, I haven't thought beyond that."
Mr Sherlock said he will take some time to reach a decision.
"We continue to work on behalf of the people, no matter who comes to us," he said.
"We'll always try to help people regardless of constituencies, but I suppose what I'm saying is that there's just a little bit of time to be taken to consider all of the options.
"We've a long way to go before the decision is made. And I'm very grateful still for the opportunity to continue to represent people."
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