Mr Adams goes to Dundalk
They parachuted Martin McGuinness into Mid Ulster and ran Bobby Sands as a prisoner candidate in Fermanagh, so it is far from unprecedented for republicans to see an electoral opportunity and move heaven and earth to exploit it.
After a period during which it seemed Gerry Adams had accustomed himself to a globetrotting retirement, his entry into the politics of County Louth looks set to take the Sinn Fein leadership in a fresh direction.
The upsides for the party will be augmenting what has been widely regarded as a lightweight team in the Dail with someone who enjoys both fame and a certain gravitas. Although the long rumoured notion of Mr Adams standing for Irish President has come to nought, this will provide him with an enhanced profile in the south, whilst Martin McGuinness increasingly is viewed as the de facto leader in the north.
The downsides could include pressure on Mr Adams to improve on the weak grasp of southern economics and society which he displayed in the TV debates during the last Dail campaign. There will also be lingering questions about his handling of the allegations concerning his Louth based brother, Liam.
The possibility that his critics might attack him for "double jobbing" have been dealt with by the Sinn Fein President making it clear that he will relinquish both his Stormont and Westminster seats. With Sinn Fein securing 71% of the vote in this year's General election there seems no doubt that the party will retain the seat in a by-election. But it will be fascinating to see who wins the selection - one of the existing MLAs, or someone parachuted in from elsewhere?
The rhetoric surrounding Mr Adams' candidacy is that he will be a voice which will "stand up against the consensus for cuts". So will Sinn Fein administer cuts north of the border and oppose them in the south? Or might this be another sign that the party could prove reluctant to agree a Stormont budget in the coming weeks? On Friday Conor Murphy talked of "challenging the British government on their proposed cuts" and refusing to run to "the British Treasury agenda."
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