First-time Offaly candidate went shopping in Liffey Valley instead of going to morning count

ONE of the first-time candidates in the Edenderry Electoral Area has revealed she went shopping this morning instead of attending the sorting of the ballot papers in Birr.

Fianna Fail’s Claire Murray was in Liffey Valley while the tallies were being conducted in Birr Community School.

Asked to comment on her day so far, the nervous but hopeful Rhode woman misspoke and accidentally referred to a decision not to go to Mucklagh this morning when she meant to say Birr.

“I went to Liffey Valley and I shopped all morning because I knew that if I had gone to Mucklagh the nerves would probably wouldn’t have coped very well,” she said.

“My director of elections Liam, he gave me a buzz when the final tally came in and told me that it’s looking like I have over the 1,000 so it’s still hard to believe.

“I’m still in the mindset of not counting any chickens before they’re hatched so I’m confident, I’m happy but I just can’t wait for that final confirmation to come.”

Two count centres in Offaly were used today. All the ballot boxes were first brought to Birr Community School where the European Parliament votes were separated from the County Council papers.

The council papers were then reboxed and moved to Mucklagh Community Centre where formal counting is ongoing.

Tallies took place in Birr and the final one for the Edenderry Electoral Area had the rookie Fianna Fail candidate on 955 votes, slightly ahead of sitting Fine Gael councillor Liam Quinn on 948.

The Edenderry Electoral Area is unusual in that there are two candidates by the name of Claire Murray in the race.

Sinn Fein’s Claire Murray received 707 first preferences according to the tally.

Fianna Fail’s Eddie Fitzpatrick will retain his seat and is certain to be elected on the first count with about 400 votes more than the predicted quota.

The next most successful candidate is a man making his political comeback, Edenderry’s Fergus McDonnell, who is standing for the new party, Independent Ireland.

With tallies indicating he has garnered 1,087 number ones, he looks certain to take one of the six seats.

The big loser in the Edenderry Area so far is Green Party representative Cllr Mark Hackett.

The Geashill-based farmer was co-opted to the vacancy created by the elevation to the Seanad of his wife, Minister Pippa Hackett.

Minister Hackett became the first Green councillor ever in Offaly when she won a seat in 2019 but support for the party has collapsed on this occasion.