Brendan Kenneally is a former Irish

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...

 politician. He was a Teachta Dála

Teachta Dála

A Teachta Dála , usually abbreviated as TD in English, is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas . It is the equivalent of terms such as "Member of Parliament" or "deputy" used in other states. The official translation of the term is "Deputy to the Dáil", though a more literal...

 (TD) for the Waterford constituency

Waterford (Dáil Éireann constituency)

Waterford is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 4 deputies...

. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann

Dáil Éireann

Dáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...

 at the 1989 general election

Irish general election, 1989

The Irish general election of 1989 was held on Thursday, 15 June 1989, three weeks after the dissolution of the Dáil on 25 May. The newly elected 166 members of the 26th Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 29 June...

. He retained the seat at subsequent elections until losing it at the 2002 general election

Irish general election, 2002

The Irish general election of 2002 was held on Friday, 17 May 2002 just over three weeks after the dissolution of the 28th Dáil on Thursday 25 April by President Mary McAleese, at the request of the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern...

. He then became a member of the 22nd Seanad, nominated by the Taoiseach. He regained his Dáil seat at the 2007 general election.

He was appointed a Minister of State

Minister of State (Ireland)

A Minister of State in Ireland is of non-Cabinet rank, attached to one or more Departments of State of the Government of Ireland....

 at the Department of Tourism, Transport and Communications by the Taoiseach

Taoiseach

The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...

 Albert Reynolds

Albert Reynolds

Albert Reynolds , served as Taoiseach of Ireland, serving one term in office from 1992 until 1994. He has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize...

 in 1992.

His father Billy Kenneally also served as a TD for Waterford from 1965–82, and his grandfather William Kenneally

William Kenneally

William Kenneally was an Irish politician. A native of Curradara, Villierstown, County Waterford, he was first elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála at the Waterford by-election held on 26 June 1952 which caused by the death of Bridget Redmond of Fine Gael. He was re-elected for...

 served as a TD for Waterford from 1952–61.

The Sunday Tribune reports that while a senator, between 2005 and 2007, Kenneally ran up total expenses amounting to €139,189.

On 3 August 2009, the Irish Independent

Irish Independent

The Irish Independent is Ireland's largest-selling daily newspaper that is published in both compact and broadsheet formats. It is the flagship publication of Independent News & Media.-History:...

revealed that Kenneally was one of the TDs with the highest expense claims in Dáil Éireann in 2008. He claimed €73,857 in expenses.

He lost his seat at the 2011 general election.