Ms Zappone, a former Independent TD for Dublin South-West, served as children and youth affairs minister from May 2016 to June 2020.
The Irish-American politician lost her Dáil seat in the 2020 general election, after which she returned to the US for three years. She previously served as a senator from 2011 to 2016, campaigning to “Save the Seanad”, and is a strong advocate for LGBTQ+ rights.
The former TD became embroiled in the “Merriongate” controversy in 2021, an outdoor social occasion in the Merrion Hotel Dublin attended by 50 people during Covid, including then tánaiste Leo Varadkar.
The government was forced to clarify Covid guidelines on outdoor gatherings in the fallout from the event.
It came days before foreign affairs minister Simon Coveney appointed her as a UN special envoy for freedom of expression.
She later relinquished the role following public furore over the nature and transparency of her appointment, which was not publicly advertised.
“It was clear that criticism of the appointment process has impacted the legitimacy of the role itself,” she said at the time.
A Department of Foreign Affairs review later stated that special envoy appointments in future be made in an “open, accountable and transparent manner”.
Also contesting the Seanad election in January 2025 is councillor Hazel Chu. The Green Party elected representative failed to secure a seat in Dublin Bay South during this year’s general election. She was contesting for the seat vacated by former party leader Eamon Ryan.
Fellow Green Ossian Smyth is also taking part in the contest, having lost out in Dún Laoghaire in the general election.
The election was disastrous for the Greens in the Dáil, with the party seeing just one TD elected – leader and Children’s Minister Roderic O’Gorman.
The Seanad election will be the final time that the University of Dublin constituency will elect three senators to the house.
Also contesting the election are current senators for the University of Dublin, Lynne Ruane (Independent) and Tom Clonan (Independent), after David Norris retired in January 2024.
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill’s husband Hugo MacNeill, who was a former Ireland, Leinster and British and Irish Lions rugby player in the 1980s, will also be on the ballot paper.
The University of Dublin constituency, which has 76,000 registered voters, has produced notable senators including former President Mary Robinson and former transport minister Shane Ross.
Abbas Ali O’Shea, Derek Byrne, Kevin Byrne, Laoise de Brún, Marcus Matthews, Aubrey McCarthy, John (Jack) Mulcahy, Paul Mulville, Ade Oluborode and Sadhbh O’Neill have also been nominated for the election.
Ballots for the election will be posted to registered voters on December 30. The poll closes at 11am on January 29.
