P. J. Sheehan

Patrick Joseph Sheehan (1 March 1933 – 10 August 2020) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Cork South-West constituency from 1981 to 2002 and 2007 to 2011.

Career Before entering politics, Sheehan worked as an auctioneer, merchant, and farmer, and used his experiences in these fields to establish his political base. He was involved in politics for more than 50 years. In 1967, he was elected to Cork County Council for the first time. He served as Fine Gael's deputy spokesperson on Agriculture with special responsibility for Forestry until 2010. He and fellow Fine Gael TD Jim O'Keeffe were noted for their cooperation within their constituency that successfully foiled Fianna Fáil's efforts to garner another seat in west Cork.

On 20 September 2010, Sheehan resigned his position as Fine Gael's deputy spokesperson on Agriculture and apologised for being under the influence of alcohol and threatening a Garda officer after she prevented him from driving while leaving Leinster House in July 2010. He was reported to have threatened her career if she disrupted him. His party leader, Enda Kenny, told a sergeant to "ignore what Sheehan had said".

Personal life Sheehan was married to Frances Collins. Together they had four children.

He died on 10 August 2020, aged 87, one week after his wife died.