Final tallies in from all the Cork city local electoral areas

Latest 2.40pm

The vote-counting process in Ireland’s local elections is under way.

A day after voters headed to the polls, the ballot boxes were opened at 9am this morning.

The ballot papers were separated, and then transferred to each count centre.

The full results will take days to be finalised because Ireland uses a system of proportional representation which allows voters to rank every candidate in each race by order of preference. The process means ballot papers are sorted and counted multiple times by hand.

Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said early indications show there “won’t be a wipe-out” of his party.

He also said that his candidates Claire Byrne and Michael Pidgeon had the potential to top the polls in their Dublin city regions.

Speaking at the RDS count centre in south Dublin, he added: “My eyes are on the country, I think we have a chance in Dingle (with) Peadar O Fionnain. It’s very tight to call but he’s not out of the running.

“If we win a seat in Dingle I’ll be celebrating as much as Dublin Bay South, if not more because that would send a really strong signal about the whole country.

“So far, we are hopeful but obviously we have to wait and see what happens. We look forward to see the next two days.”

Estimated support for Sinn Fein then hovered above 30% for a long time, even temporarily reaching highs of around 35%.

However, polls over the last eight months suggest that support is on a dramatic slide as independents take more of the expected vote share.

Many ballot papers contain a large number of independents with a variety of political leanings, several of whom have been described as anti-immigrant.

Fine Gael appears to have had a “Harris hop” in the polls after the shock resignation of Leo Varadkar as leader of the party earlier this year, leading to Simon Harris taking over that position as well as the role of Taoiseach.

While the count for the European elections is not officially under way, the segregating of the ballot papers allowed observers to get a sense of which candidates are performing well.

In the South constituency, Fine Gael’s Sean Kelly and Fianna Fáil’s Billy Kelleher are considered to be in contention for re-election.

Sinn Féin will be hoping to regain a seat in the region with Kathleen Funchion.

1.50pm

WITH all boxes now tallied at Nemo Rangers, count staff have packed up and headed for City Hall, where the first count in the local elections will begin at 2pm.

All 43 boxes have been opened in Cork City North West.

The boxes tallied show Fianna Fáil on 28.46%, Sinn Féin on 25.63%, Fine Gael on 15.25, Others on 15.05%, People Before Profit-Solidarity on 5.93%, the Green Party on 3.71%, the Social Democrats on 3.21%, and Labour on 2.75%.

In Cork City North West, former lord mayor Tony Fitzgerald is leading on 15.56%, Fine Gael’s Damien Boylan is on 15.25%, Fianna Fáil’s Dr John Sheehan is on 12.9%, Sinn Féin’s Kenneth Collins is on 10.49%, and his party colleague, Michelle Gould, is tallying at 9.18%, while Mick Nugent, also of Sinn Féin, is 5.97%.

Ballot boxes arriving for the count #LocalElections2024 pic.twitter.com/2ItAh9dT1q

— Cork City Council (@corkcitycouncil) June 8, 2024

People Before Profit-Solidarity’s Brian McCarthy is on 5.93%, as is Ross Lahive of the Irish People.

In Cork City North East, all 48 boxes have been tallied.

The boxes tallied show that Others are on 33.31%, Fine Gael is on 16.05%, Labour on 14.32%, and Fianna Fáil is on 13.25%.

Sinn Féin is on 9%, the Green Party on 6.51%, People Before Profit-Solidarity on 4.58%, and the Social Democrats on 2.98%.

In Cork City North East, Kenneth O’Flynn of Independent Ireland is topping the tally at 22.57%, while John Maher of the Labour Party is on 14.32%, Margaret McDonnell of Fianna Fáil is on 9.97%, former lord mayor Joe Kavanagh of Fine Gael is on 9.79%, and Ted Tynan of the Workers’ Party is on 6.58%.

Oliver Moran of the Green Party is on 6.51%, Sinn Féin’s Christa Daley is on 6.04%, Edith Busteed of People Before Profit-Solidarity is on 4.58%.

With all boxes tallied on Cork City South Central, Fine Gael’s Shane O’Callaghan is topping the tally on 17.7%, Fianna Fáil’s Seán Martin is on 12.9%, Pádraig Rice of the Social Democrats is on 10.1%, the Green Party’s Dan Boyle is on 8.2%, Independent candidate Paudie Dineen is also on 8.2%, Independent candidate William O’Brien is on 8.1%, Sinn Féin’s Fiona Kerins is at 7.8%, and Fianna Fáil’s David Boyle is on 5.8%.

With all boxes tallied in Cork City South East, former lord mayor Terry Shannon of Fianna Fáil is tallying on 14.1%, former lord mayor Mary Rose Desmond of Fianna Fáil is on 12%, former lord mayor Des Cahill of Fine Gael is on 11.4%, outgoing Lord Mayor, Independent councillor Kieran McCarthy is also on 11.4%, while the Green Party’s Honore Kamegni is on 7.5%.

Fine Gael’s Deirdre Forde, another former lord mayor is on 7.4%, while the Labour Party’s Peter Horgan is also tallying at 7.4%.

Fine Gael’s Barry O’Brien is on 5.9%, and Sinn Féin’s Chris O’Leary, another former lord mayor, is tallying on 5.3%.

Sitting councillor Lorna Bogue of Rabhartas is tallying at 3.4%.

In Cork City South West, all boxes have tallied and Fianna Fáil’s Fergal Dennehy is on 11.79%, former lord mayor Colm Kelleher is on 10.9%, with Fine Gael’s Garret Kelleher on 8.9 %, Labour’s Laura Harmon on 8.1%, Albert Deasy of Independent Ireland on 7.4%, Terry Coleman of Fianna Fáil on 6.9%, Sinn Féin’s Joe Lynch on 6.1%, Ciaran McCarthy of the Social Democrats is on 5.8%, Sinn Féin’s Orla O’Leary is on 5.1% and Fine Gael’s Gary O’Brien is on 5%.

Sitting Green Party councillor Collete Finn is tallying at 4.3%.

1pm - CORK CITY SOUTH CENTRAL, CORK CITY SOUTH EAST & CORK CITY SOUTH WEST

THE most recent southside tallies for the local elections show a strong performance for lord mayors past and present.

On the northside, tallies show the total number of boxes opened, while the southside has gone with percentages rather than a figure.

A tally of the boxes opened shows that in Cork City South Central, some 51.4% of votes have been tallied.

The boxes tallied show Fine Gael’s Shane O’Callaghan is soaring ahead on 27.4%, Fianna Fáil’s Seán Martin is on 9.8%, Pádraig Rice of the Social Democrats is on 8.1%, the Green Party’s Dan Boyle is on 8%, Fianna Fáil’s David Boyle is on 7.5%, and Sinn Féin’s Fiona Kerins is at 6%.

Independent candidate Paudie Dineen is on 5.9%, Independent candidate William O’Brien is on 5.1%, and Anna Daly of Aontu is on 5%. 

In Cork City South East, 46.7% of votes have been tallied.

Former lord mayor Terry Shannon of Fianna Fáil is tallying on 15.8%, former lord mayor Des Cahill of Fine Gael is on 13.3%, outgoing Lord Mayor, Independent councillor Kieran McCarthy is on 12.5%, former lord mayor Mary Rose Desmond is on 9.1%, while the Green Party’s Honore Kampegni is on 7.7%.

Fine Gael’s Barry O’Brien is on 6.4%, while Peter Horgan of the Labour Party is on 6.2%, and Fine Gael’s Deirdre Forde, another former lord mayor is on 5.5%.

Sinn Féin’s Chris O’Leary, another former lord mayor, is tallying on 5.2%.

In Cork City South West, a percentage of the votes tallied was not available.

Fianna Fáil’s Fergal Dennehy is on 14%, former lord mayor Colm Kelleher is on 10.8%, with Labour’s Laura Harmon on 7.6%, Fine Gael’s Garret Kelleher on 7.5%, Albert Deasy of Independent Ireland on 6.7%, Sinn Féin’s Joe Lynch on 6.5%, Fine Gael’s Gary O’Brien on 5.4%, Trevor McCarthy of Sinn Fein is on 5.2% and Ciaran McCarthy of the Social Democrats is on 5.1%.

12.05pm CORK CITY NORTH EAST & CORK CITY NORTH WEST

THE most recent northside tallies for the local elections show some old reliables doing well and some potential surprises.

A tally of the boxes opened shows that in Cork City North West, where there are 43 boxes, some 39 have been tallied, or 91%.

The boxes tallied show Fianna Fáil on 28.67%, Sinn Féin on 27.42%, Others on 15.54%, Fine Gael on 12.06%, and People Before Profit-Solidarity on 6.4%.

Tallies show the Green Party is on 3.65%, the Social Democrats on 3.33%, and Labour on 2.92%.

In Cork City North West, former lord mayor Tony Fitzgerald is leading on 16.7%, Fine Gael’s Damien Boylan is on 12.06%, Fianna Fáil’s Dr John Sheehan is on 11.97% and Sinn Féin’s Kenneth Collins is on 11.25%. His party colleague, Michelle Gould, is tallying at 9.82%, and People Before Profit-Solidarity’s Brian McCarthy is on 6.4%.

Sinn Féin’s Mick Nugent is on 6.35%, just ahead of Ross Lahive of the Irish People who is on 6.31%.

In Cork City North East, of 48 boxes, 32 have been tallied, or 67%.

The boxes tallied show that Others are on 35.91%, Fine Gael is on 14.99%, Labour on 14.7%, and Fianna Fáil is on 9.57%.

Sinn Féin is on 9.18%, the Green Party on 6.81%, People Before Profit-Solidarity on 5.44%, and the Social Democrats on 3.4%.

In Cork City North East, Kenneth O’Flynn is topping the tally at 22.64%, while John Maher of the Labour Party is on 14.7%, former lord mayor Joe Kavanagh of Fine Gael is on 11.2%, and Ted Tynan of the Workers’ Party is on 8.44%.

Sinn Féin’s Christa Daley is on 7.14%, Oliver Moran of the Green Party is on 6.81%, Margaret McDonnell of Fianna Fáil is on 6.33%, Edith Busteed of People Before Profit-Solidarity is on 5.44%, Imelda Daly of Fine Gael is on 3.79%, and Sinead Halpin of the Social Democrats is on 3.4%.

11.40am CORK CITY SOUTH CENTRAL, CORK CITY SOUTH EAST & CORK CITY SOUTH WEST

THE earliest southside tallies for the local elections show a strong performance for lord mayors past and present.

Tallies are not considered scientific and come with a large grain of salt, but can be helpful in showing early patterns of voting.

On the northside, tallies show the total number of boxes opened, while the southside has gone with percentages rather than a figure.

A tally of the boxes opened shows that in Cork City South Central, some 19% of votes have been tallied.

The boxes tallied show Fine Gael’s Shane O’Callaghan is on 22.8%, the Green Party’s Dan Boyle is on 9%, Pádraig Rice of the Social Democrats is on 8.1%, Fianna Fáil’s David Boyle is on 7.8%, Fianna Fáil’s Seán Martin is on 7.8%, Anna Daly of Aontu is on 6.5% and Independent candidate William O’Brien is 6.5%, the Labour Party’s Dr Lekha Menon Margassery is on 5.6%, Independent candidate Paudie Dineen is on 5.5% and Sinn Féin’s Fiona Kerins is at 5.5%.

In Cork City South East, 12.3% of votes have been tallied.

Former lord mayor Terry Shannon of Fianna Fáil is tallying on 17%, his party colleague and fellow former lord mayor Mary Rose Desmond is on 13.3%, while outgoing Lord Mayor, Independent councillor Kieran McCarthy is on 12.1%.

Another former lord mayor, Fine Gael’s Des Cahill, is on 9.3%, while the Green Party’s Honore Kampegni’s 7.1%.

Fine Gael’s Barry O’Brien is on 6.9%, while Peter Horgan of the Labour Party is on 6.2%, as is Michelle Cowhey Shahid, and Fine Gael’s Deirdre Forde, another former lord mayor is on 6%.

In Cork City South West, a percentage of votes tallied was not available.

Former lord mayor Colm Kelleher is on a whopping 42.3%, with Fine Gael’s Garret Kelleher 10.7%, Sinn Féin’s Joe Lynch on 10.1%, Fine Gael’s Gary O’Brien on 8.1%, Laura Harmon of the Labour Party is on 4.7% and Ciaran McCarthy of the Social Democrats is on 4%.

11am - CORK CITY NORTH EAST & CORK CITY NORTH WEST

THE earliest northside tallies for the local elections show an impressive performance by Sinn Féin in Cork City North West, with first-time candidate Michelle Gould just ahead of her colleague Kenneth Collins, while in Cork City North East, former lord mayor Joe Kavanagh is leading the pack ahead of Ken O’Flynn of Independent Ireland and John Maher of the Labour Party.

Tallies are considered more of an art than a science, and come with an obvious health warning, but they can be helpful in showing early patterns of voting.

On the northside, a tally of the boxes opened shows that in Cork City North West, where there are 43 boxes, some 13 have been tallied, or 30%.

The boxes tallied show Sinn Féin on 32.43%, Fianna Fáil on 20.62%, Others on 19.53%, and People Before Profit-Solidarity on 10.12%.

Tallies show the Green Party is on 4.97%, the Social Democrats on 4.44%, Fine Gael on 3.99%, and Labour on 3.91%.

In Cork City North West, Sinn Féin’s Michelle Gould is tallying at 14.41%, followed by her party colleague Kenneth Collins on 13.43%.

Fianna Fáil’s Tony Fitzgerald is on 13.43%, and People Before Profit-Solidarity’s Brian McCarthy is on 10.12%.

Fianna Fáil’s Dr John Sheehan is on 8.16%, Ross Lahive of the Irish People is on 8.01%, and Independent Stephen Morrissey is on 7.11%.

Louise Jordan of the Green Party is on 4.97%, Sinn Féin’s Mick Nugent is on 4.59%, Saoirse Mackin of the Social Democrats is on 4.44%, and Finian Toomey of Aontu is on 4.40%.

Damian Boylan of Fine Gael is on 3.99% and James Joy of the Labour Party is on 3.91%.

In Cork City North East, of 48 boxes, 10 have been tallied, or 21%.

The boxes tallied show that Others are on 27.38%, Fine Gael is on 23.67%, Labour on 11.31%, and Fianna Fáil is on 10.26%.

Tallies show that People Before Profit-Solidarity on 6.36%, Sinn Fein on 5.96%, the Green Party on 4.97%, and the Social Democrats on 4.85%.

In Cork City North East, Fine Gael’s Joe Kavanagh is on 20.67%, Ken O’Flynn of Independent Ireland is on 15.07%, John Maher of the Labour Party is on 11.31% and Ted Tynan of the Workers’ Party is on 9.46%.

Edith Busteed of People Before Profit-Solidarity is on 6.36%, Margaret McDonnell of Fianna Fáil is on 6.3%, Christa Daley of Sinn Féin is on 4.95%, Sinead Halpin of the Social Democrats is on 4.85%, Shane Ryan of Fianna Fáil is on 3.95%, Imelda Daly of Fine Gael is on 3%, and Anita Ward of the Irish People is on 1.05%.

Sinn Féin’s Mandy O’Leary Hegarty is on 1%, Martin Condon, non-party, is on 0.8%, and Tamasin MacCarthy Morrogh, non-party, is on 0.4%.

9am

The vote counting process is to begin later today in the local election.

A day after voters headed to the polls in three highly anticipated elections, the ballot boxes were opened at 9am - in Cork this took place at Nemo Rangers GAA club - before counting gets under way later today.

Early tallies are expected to start coming in from around 10am.

People voted to elect a swathe of new councillors as well as picking candidates to send to the European Parliament and, for the first time, Limerick voters will be directly electing a mayor to represent them locally.

The ballot papers for the local government elections will be sorted and counted first, before the papers in the European and Limerick mayoral elections are counted on Sunday and Monday respectively.

The count staff in centres across the nation will separate the votes – which is expected to take some hours – before counting them.

The ballot papers are separated based on first preference votes, with spoilt votes separated from the piles.

Spoilt votes are those which are deemed illegible because there are multiple first preference votes or they have been defaced with messages.

To win a seat in a local authority, candidates have to meet the required quota of votes, which is calculated by dividing the total valid poll by one more than the number of available seats, and then adding one.

There are 31 local government bodies in Ireland. Each county and city council is divided into local electoral areas with a specified number of council seats to be filled in the election.

In total, there are 166 electoral areas in Ireland and each of them elects a number of councillors. The number of councillors to be elected nationally is 949.

These representatives are tasked with making policy decisions at local level including on planning and community development.

At the same time, EU citizens registered in Ireland were eligible to vote for 14 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) across three varied constituencies: Dublin, South, and Midlands-North-West.

The MEPs are responsible for debating EU-wide legislation and working on the budget for the bloc.

The local and European elections are held every five years.

Ballots in the local elections will be sorted straight away on Saturday but results in the European election cannot be declared until after all EU states have finished polling – which will not happen until late on Sunday night. Counting in the mayoral election is expected to begin on Monday.

Even then, Ireland uses a system of proportional representation which allows voters to rank every candidate in each race by order of preference.

Candidates must reach a certain quota of votes in order to be deemed elected.

In the likely event that not enough candidates are above this threshold following the first count, hopefuls with the least amount of votes are eliminated and their votes are redistributed based on the further preferences on the ballot papers. The same occurs when a candidate is elected with a “surplus” of votes.

It means the paper ballots in each election, which are filled out with pencil or pens, are sorted and counted multiple times by hand.

The entire process is expected to last days.