Lie of the land...

As well as the four incumbents seeking re-election, running in this constituency this time out is former minister of state Kevin 'Boxer' Moran, who lost his Dáil seat in 2020. Having made a return to local politics in June, Councillor Moran has vowed "to take a seat" this time after a very strong result in the June local elections, where he won almost 40% of the Athlone vote and two-and-a-half quotas.

As with 2020, Fine Gael is running three candidates. They are sitting TD and Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke, Senator Micheál Carrigy and Athlone businesswoman Tanya Cannon.

Fianna Fáil is also running three candidates: incumbents Robert Troy and Joe Flaherty, as well as Dympna Cunniffe.

Sinn Féin has opted to run two candidates - sitting TD Sorca Clarke and Granard resident Barry Campion.

Running for the Labour Party is long-time party activist Fidelma Bennet, who based in Mullingar. She is a former teacher and currently manages a homeless hostel.

Farmer and sports psychologist Charlotte Keenan is standing as an Independent, as is psychotherapist Paul Bradley.