Carlow Kilkenny has its new representatives for the 34th Dáil.
It took 16 counts and more than 30 hours to whittle down the 20 candidates, the biggest constituency casualty being the outgoing Minister of State and local Green TD Malcolm Noonan.
All three Fianna Fáil hopefuls were elected – John McGuinness and Jennifer Murnane O’Connor retaining their seats, joined by Peter ‘Chap’ Cleere. While Carlow managed to follow through on its hopes of electing two of its county based candidates, both of them female, with Catherine Callaghan of Fine Gael the only from her party to succeed. And South Kilkenny based Natasha Newsome Drennan held onto the Sinn Féin holding recently vacated now MEP Kathleen Funchion.
In Tipperary North, where approx 5,000 north west Kilkenny voters cast their ballot, a full recount is set to start at 11 o’clock this morning – just Independent Michael Lowry elected there, expected to be joined by Labour’s Alan Kelly with Jim Ryan (Independent) and Michael Smith (Fianna Fáil) tied for a third.
Though he topped the Carlow Kilkenny poll, it wasn’t until 9pm last night that John McGuinness was the first officially returned locally – our Alan O’Reilly nabbed him just after the result was called;
He was later joined by party colleague Peter ‘Chap’ Cleere, elevated from his role as a councillor in the Callan Thomastown electoral district with Kilkenny County Council to the higher house – Sinéad Burke got his reaction;
Just before 2am Catherine Callaghan, who lost out by a single vote in the Local Elections earlier this year, became the first female Fine Gael Dáil representative for Carlow.
The last count, the 16th, just after 4am saw the last two seats filled – Jennifer Murnane O’Connor securing the hat trick for Fianna Fáil and holding onto her seat;
While Natasha Newsome Drennan held onto the seat vacated by the now MEP Kathleen Funchion;
Stay tuned to KCLR for more from the candidates and reactions to their elections.
