The Labour Party are absolutely thrilled with the election of Rob O’Donoghue in Fingal West.
The indications were there from the local elections in the summer that Mr O’Donoghue could be a future TD when he topped the poll with over 3,100 votes in the Lusk/Rush electoral area.
Labour had a presence for many years in Dublin North but with the election of Mr O’Donoghue it meant it was in with a serious shout of securing two out of six seats following the establishment of two new three-seat constituencies if Duncan Smith could hold on in Fingal East.
The break-up of the old Dublin North constituency also posed potential challenges for Sinn Féin as it separated the large town of Swords from more northern areas around Balbriggan and Skerries which were the base of the party’s standard bearer Louise O’Reilly.
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However, it was a good election also for Sinn Féin. Ms O’Reilly, the party’s spokeswoman on enterprise, topped the poll and was elected on the fourth count.
She said the result showed that the outcome for the party in the area in 2020 had not been “a flash in the pan”.
Fine Gael also has a new first time TD in the area with the election of solicitor Grace Boland. She is the daughter of former Fine Gael minister John Boland.
But for Fianna Fáil’s Lorraine Clifford-Lee and Independent Tony Murphy, who had both been tipped to potentially secure seats, the outcome will be disappointing.
