Elections 2024: Tipperary County Council results round-up

Though it was a long night, the accuracy of the first count in Thurles filled 20 of the 40 available seats on Tipperary County Council.

The count adjourned in the early hours of Sunday morning and resumed at 10:10am, after a few hours of respite for the counters, candidates, staff and reporters.

The various counts were announced over the course of the day on Sunday, with the final councillor for Tipperary County Council being announced at 8:20pm, and with that, the count was complete.

The breakdown of the elected councillors, and when they were elected, and whether they have retained their seats or are first time elects, can be seen below.

The changes in seats between 2019 and 2024 can be seen on the table below.

The main changes since the last election are as follows:

The Labour Party has trebled its seats in Tipperary, gaining a seat in the Nenagh LEA, Carrick-on-Suir LEA, and retaining its seat in the Newport LEA.

Fine Gael has lost two seats, while Fianna Fáil has gained one, as have Independent candidates.

CAHIR LEA (Local Electoral Area) – 4 seats:

Independent candidates Máirín McGrath (2,079) and Andy Moloney (1,762) were both elected on the first count.

The next candidate to be elected was Fine Gael’s Marie Murphy (1,456) on the fifth count.

Fianna Fáil’s Micheál Anglim (1,462) took the final available seat in the LEA on the eighth count.

All four elected candidates have retained their seats from 2019.

CARRICK-ON-SUIR LEA – 5 seats:

Fianna Fáil’s Imelda Goldsboro (1,898) was elected on the first count, alongside Sinn Féin’s David Dunne (1,759), retaining the seats they secured in 2019.

On the second count, Labour Party’s Michael ‘Chicken’ Brennan (1,611) was elected for the first time, having just missed the quota in the first count (Votes: 1,486, Quota: 1,508)

He was followed by Fianna Fáil’s Kieran Bourke (1,518), who held onto the seat he won in 2019.

Finally, the last seat was filled by Fine Gael’s Mark Fitzgerald (1,545) who also retained his seat.

CASHEL-TIPPERARY LEA – 7 seats:

Independent candidate and first-time elect John O’Heney (2,534) surpassed the quota of 1,560 and took the first seat in the LEA on the first count.

The first count also saw Fine Gael’s Declan Burgess (1,852) and independent candidate Liam Browne (1,665) elected. Burgess retained his seat, while Browne is elected for the first time.

On the seventh count, the fourth seat was retained by Fianna Fáil’s Roger Kennedy (1,566)

The eighth count saw Fine Gael’s Mary Hanna Hourigan (1,615) retain her seat.

Joining the councillors in the tenth round was Fine Gael’s John Crosse (1,739), also retaining his seat.

The final elect for the final seat in the entirety of Tipperary was Sinn Féin’s Annemarie Ryan Shiner (1,230), who retained her seat on the eleventh count.

CLONMEL LEA – 6 seats:

On the first count, Fine Gael’s Michael Murphy (2,746), WUA’s Pat English (1,574), and Fianna Fáil’s Siobhán Ambrose (1,512) held their seats from the last election.

Fine Gael’s John Fitzgerald (1,824) also held his seat on the second count.

On the fifth count, independent candidate Richie Molloy (1,409) did the same.

The final seat was filled by another independent candidate, Niall P Dennehy (1,291).

All of the successful candidates retained seats won in the last election.

NENAGH LEA – 5 seats:

To no surprise, independent candidates Joe Hannigan (2,233) and Michael O’Meara (1,822) were elected on the first count.

The third count saw the first-time election of Fianna Fáil’s Ryan O’Meara (1,747).

The Local Electoral Area was complete by the end of the fourth count with the re-election of independent candidate Séamus Morris (1,851), and the first-time election of Labour Party’s Louise Morgan Walsh (1,749).

NEWPORT LEA – 4 seats:

The first count in the area saw the filling of three of the four available seats.

These were Labour Party’s Fiona Bonfield (2,346), first-time elect and independent candidate Pamela Quirke O’Meara (1,665), and Fine Gael’s Dr Phyll Bugler (1,636).

This left one seat up for grabs, which was retained by Fianna Fáil’s John Carroll (1,595) on the fourth count.

ROSCREA-TEMPLEMORE LEA – 4 seats:

On the first count, two candidates held their seats – Fianna Fáil’s Michael Smith (2,460) and independent candidate Shane Lee (2,231).

The third seat for this LEA was filled on the third count by independent candidate Eddie Moran (1,887) who retained his seat.

Fine Gael’s William Kennedy (1,616) took the fourth and final seat in the sixth count, securing his first seat in the LEA.

THURLES LEA – 5 seats:

The first count saw independent candidates Jim Ryan (2,435), and Micheál Lowry (2,184), and Fianna Fáil’s Sean Ryan (1,638) retain their seats.

The second count welcomed first-time elect, Fianna Fáil’s Kay Cahill Skehan (1,777), who had previously co-opted for her brother, Jack Cahill.

The final seat for the LEA was filled by Fine Gael’s Peggy Ryan (1,640) on the fourth count. Ms Ryan continues to hold her seat from previous elections.