A significant number of seats have been claimed in the local elections; however, the first tally results are yet to be confirmed in numerous local electoral regions. The majority of taken seats have been secured by Independent candidates as well as members of the Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil parties. Thomas Welby, an Independent incumbent, secured victory in the Connemara North region under the Galway County Council, emerging as the top pick in this year’s elections.
Connemara North also had the honour of being the first electoral area to conclude their count. Séamus Walsh, who ran as an Independent after a disagreement with Fianna Fáil over refugee accommodation, was elected in the second count. Meanwhile, Eileen Mannion from Fine Gael and Gerry King from Fianna Fáil secured their positions in the fourth count.
Counting began in centres throughout the country starting at 9 in the morning. Out of all the positions, 949 are reserved for council seats while 14 are for the European Parliament. Despite a disappointing day for Sinn Féin, the Independent candidates are expected to do well. The election results revealed a significant drop in Sinn Féin support.
Although Sinn Féin anticipates improvements on its poor local election outcome in 2019, there is little optimism regarding the prospects of their candidates enjoying sweeping victories similar to the 2020 general elections. It had high hopes of significantly boosting its council seats but the multi-candidate approach hasn’t been effective in several regions.
Robert Brosnan of Sinn Féin, who was elected during the fourth count in Corca Dhuibhne in County Kerry, was the first from his party to be elected. In spite of this, the party seems to be struggling as many added candidates appear to be falling behind in the results so far, not meeting the expectations for a party intending to head the next government.
The Green Party has performed better than anticipated at the local level. Hazel Chu, one of their members, was re-elected to the Dublin City Council’s Pembroke ward in the first count, though their vote share within the capital has dropped. However, those who were previously elected and had large vote surpluses seem to be on course for success once again.
“Election Update: Early victors and defeats unravel
Simon Harris radiates positivity
Taoiseach Simon Harris, in a voice message sent over Fine Gael’s WhatsApp group, expressed that he was greatly heartened by the outcomes of the initial vote counts. “Whilst we’ve got a lengthy journey ahead, I’m overwhelmingly heartened at this point seeing numerous of our contenders excelling across urban and rural Ireland, spanning the length and breadth of this nation,” he stated. “This wasn’t a coincidence but a result of your diligent efforts on the field, including grassroots members and endorsers. It’s the great privilege of my life to serve as your leader and this country’s Taoiseach.”
[Five revelations from Saturday’s election outcomes]
Fianna Fáil’s leader Micheál Martin suggested his party was outperforming the forecasts made by polls and a number of analysts. Despite varying results, he expressed his commitment, along with his coalition partners, to the government completing its full term. Rejecting the idea of a general election in the autumn, he forecasted that it would probably occur next February or March. He also projected the party’s victory in securing a European seat in Midlands-North-West, where it has fielded three contestants including TD Barry Cowen.
Labour insiders remained hopeful following preliminary signs in regions such as Drogheda, Wexford, and Cork.
Dublin Outcomes
In Dublin, Fine Gael and the Green Party bagged the initial two seats on the Dublin City Council. James Geoghegan (FG) received the highest number of votes in the Pembroke area and got elected in the first round alongside Ms Chu. Fine Gael’s Emma Blain and Labour’s Dermot Lacey achieved success in the Pembroke district on the second round of voting.
The Green Party is unlikely to replicate its remarkable 2019 accomplishment on the city council, however, several members could potentially secure or retain their seats. The Greens also have a chance of maintaining their six seats on the Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council.
The Social Democrats have demonstrated promising results in Dublin, especially in the northside where they might secure two seats in Artane-Whitehall. Longtime Independent John Lyons seems set to achieve the highest votes in this constituency with anti-immigration candidate Kevin Coyle similarly in the race. Out of the numerous far-right contenders contesting in Dublin, Gavin Pepper in Ballymun-Finglas and Malachy Steenson in the North Inner City appear best positioned to gain a seat.
‘No significant advances’ ”
Finance Minister Michael McGrath has remarked that despite the focus on immigration during pre-election canvassing, the far-right has failed to make any significant gains, according to the counts and results from the Saturday evening. He commended this result as positive at Cork City Hall.
In the North West of Cork City, Fine Gael’s Damian Boylan and Fianna Fáil’s Tony Fitzgerald, both incumbent councillors, bagged the initial two seats, exceeding the quota in their first tally.
Seats in Monaghan County Council’s first count were secured by Fine Gael’s Richard Truell and Fianna Fáil’s Seamus Coyle in the Ballybay Clones LEA.
Galway County Council’s Tuam division saw Fine Gael’s Andrew Reddington and Peter Roche sweeping to victory with substantial surpluses. This could potentially result in the election of the party’s third candidate, Ollie Turner, sports editor at Galway Bay FM.
In Kildare, Social Democrat Claire O’Rourke, a first-time candidate and former HSE counsellor, grasped a seat in the first count in the Celbridge LEA. Another first-time candidate, Fianna Fáil’s David Trost, also topped the polls and snatched a seat.
In Kilkenny, Fianna Fáil’s Peter ‘Chap’ Cleere led the polls in Callan-Thomastown and was elected in the first count, alongside colleagues Joe Sheridan of Fianna Fáil and Joe Lyons of Fine Gael. Seats four and five look likely to be claimed by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil while Sinn Féin remains a contender for the sixth.
In Meath, though Sinn Féin has three councillors and is proposing 14 candidates, their average polling across six electoral regions lags at 13.1%. This trails behind Fine Gael’s 25.6% and Fianna Fáil’s 19.8%. The count in Meath is expected to commence on Sunday.
In the European Parliament elections, early tally results mirror recent polling trends.
Billy Kelleher and Seán Kelly, affiliated with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael respectively, seemed to be performing strongly in South Ireland. Kathleen Funchion from Sinn Féin and Cynthia Ní Mhurchú from Fianna Fáil also appeared to be strong competitors.
In Dublin, favourable first preferences were gravitating towards Barry Andrews of Fianna Fáil, with Regina Doherty of Fine Gael also expected to possibly secure a seat.
In the Midlands-North-West region, insiders believed that Barry Cowen, a Fianna Fáil figure, Ciaran Mullooly, a former Midlands correspondent for RTÉ, Nina Carberry and Maria Walsh of Fine Gael, along with Independent contender Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan, were performing admirably.
In the race for Limerick City mayor, Independent candidate John Moran had emerged as a frontrunner in both city and county areas, with fellow Independent Helen O’Donnell hot on his heels.