Dublin: Daniel Ennis of the Social Democrats has won the Dublin Central by-election, increasing the party’s strength in the Dáil to 12 TDs.
The by-election was triggered following the resignation of former Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe from the constituency seat.
Thanking voters after his victory, Ennis said he would “never disappoint the people” who placed their trust in him. The result also marks the first time the Social Democrats have secured two sitting TDs from the same constituency and places the party ahead of Labour in Dáil representation.
Ennis secured victory on the ninth count after benefiting significantly from transfers from Green Party candidate Janet Horner. Although Janice Boylan received 1,641 transfer votes from independent candidate Gerry Hutch, it was not enough to overtake Ennis, who maintained his lead throughout the later stages of the count.
Janet Horner finished third in the contest, while Gerry Hutch was eliminated in fourth place. Around 35 percent of Hutch’s transfer votes went to independent candidate Malachy Steenson, while Sinn Féin’s Janice Boylan received approximately 27 percent of Hutch’s second-preference votes, amounting to about 1,200 votes from his total of 4,466.
Hutch did not significantly benefit from transfers from Ray McAdam of Fine Gael and was eventually overtaken by Green Party candidate Janet Horner.
Meanwhile, counting in the Galway West by-election, which was suspended overnight, is set to resume at 9 am on Sunday. Noel Thomas of Independent Ireland is currently leading ahead of Seán Kyne, with observers predicting a closely contested finish.
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