Dublin City Council: Chu sets the pace with Green Party making gains in all areas

Independent councillor Mannix Flynn has taken the fifth and final seat in the South East Inner City following a recount that saw People Before Profit candidate Annette Mooney lose out by just eight votes.

In an impassioned speech following his win, Mr Flynn said the experience of dealing with People Before Profit during the recount process has been “traumatic” and he compared the party and its supporters to the “Taliban or Isis” in their behaviour at the count centre in recent days.

“People Before Profit have no regard for democracy” and had sought to “undermine the democratic process,” he said.

On Sunday, a relative unknown, Hazel Chu became the first councillor elected in Dublin city and the first Green elected nationally in what will be a bumper day for the party, and the best local election result in its history.

Party leader Eamon Ryan said he was “thrilled” by Chu’s success in her election at the first count in the five-seater Pembroke ward with 4,069 votes - almost double the quota. He predicted the party would secure eight or even nine seats in the city of the 10 candidates the Greens ran for the city’s 11 wards.

Asked if the party should have run more candidates in the city, Mr Ryan said it certainly could have run a second in Pembroke. “We could have run two here and we would have won two here.”

With the possibility that the Greens could be the largest party on the council Mr Ryan said their strategy for the coming term would be “about more than just dividing up mayors and chairs” and would see the party pushing for real environmental measures to be taken at council level.

Chu born in Ireland, to parents from Hong Kong, is the partner of sitting Green city councillor Patrick Costello. She said it was “a bit overwhelming but great privilege” to be elected.

Two Green candidates who were celebrating in the RDS were Michael Pidgeon and Hazel Chu, both of whom are poll toppers.

Hazel Chu topped the poll in the Pembroke area with more than 2,000 votes above the quota, told The Irish Times: “Politics was never part of what we do. Both my parents were kitchen workers, they washed dishes. It wasn’t until I met my partner Patrick Costello who is, hopefully, a councillor in Kimmage Rathmines because he is topping the poll, that I decided to get involved in the Greens. I decided you know what, I’ll put my name forward.”

Mr Pidgeon said at one stage he expected to have to fight for the last seat instead of topping the poll. “I am a little bit in shock. I’m really humbled. We thought we would be scrapping away for the last seat here. There hasn’t been a Green councillor here for 25 years,” he said. “There is a part of me that’s aware that we worked really hard on the campaign. This isn’t a personal vote, it’s not even really a party vote. It’s a vote about the issues the Government are not tackling. From what I can tell, looking at the areas where we got the votes, they were coming in from areas including areas that wouldn’t have been traditionally Green at all.”

French-born Sophie Nicoullaud was elected for the Green Party in the Ballyfermot-Drimnagh Dublin City Council ward, as yet another first time candidate brought in on a surge of popularity for the party.

Sitting Sinn Féin councillor Daithí Doolan topped the poll in the ward, and was followed by Solidarity-People Before Profit candidate Hazel de Nortúin on the eight count. A strong number of transfers for Ms Nicoullaud, who moved to Ireland in 2006, saw her take the third seat in the ninth and final count.

Independent councillor Vincent Jackson retained his seat, finishing behind Ms Nicoullaud. It was initially announced that Michael Jackson had been elected to the council, a mistake quickly corrected by the returning office team. Fianna Fáil’s Daithí de Róiste took the last seat in the ward, beating the Labour Party candidate Michael O’Sullivan by 178 votes.

The Greens knocked another one out of the park with Claire Byrne, one of their three sitting councillors, topping the poll in the South East Inner City. Byrne was a comfortable winner with 1,961 first preferences ahead of the 1,144 quota in this five seater.

Sinn Fein’s Chris Andrews, once a Fianna Fáil councillor, but now a full council term in Sinn Féin, took a seat after the fourth count. However, the rest of the field is very spread out, with a large number of first timers in this ward and no one else with a particularly impressive first preference showing.

(First preference votes: candidates elected in bold)

Artane-Whitehall: 6 seats

Patricia Roe (Social Democrats) - 1,951 (elected count 1)
Larry O’Toole (Sinn Féin) - 1,757 (elected count 3)
Racheal Batten (Fianna Fáil) - 1,362 (elected count 7)
Alison Gilliland (Labour Party) - 1,276 (elected count 7)
Declan Flanagan (Fine Gael) - 1,264 (elected count 7)
John Lyons (Independent) - 1,246 (elected count 6)
Seán Paul Mahon (Fianna Fáil) - 1,100
Edel Moran (Sinn Féin) - 1,063
Paddy Bourke (Independent) - 776
Paul Clarke (Independent) - 729
Ciarán Heaphey (Éirígí) - 404

Ballyfermot–Drimnagh: 5 seats

Daithí Doolan (Sinn Féin) - 1,628 (elected count 6)
Hazel De Nortúin (Solidarity-PBP) - 1,383 (elected count 8)
Vincent Jackson (Ind) - 1,346 (elected count 9)
Sophie Nicoullaud (Green Party) - 1,321 (elected count 9)
Daithí De Róiste (Fianna Fáil) - 1,135 (elected count 9)
Michael O’Sullivan (Labour Party) - 946
Nicky Uzell (I4C) - 820
Greg Kelly (Sinn Féin) - 782
Obi Ekoba (Fine Gael) - 586
Eoin Neylon (Fianna Fáil) - 392
Richard Murray (Ind) - 346
Robert Michael Foley (Ind)- 126

Ballymun–Finglas: 6 seats

Paul McAuliffe (Fianna Fáil) - 2,300 (elected count 1)
Noeleen Reilly (Independent) - 1,741 (elected count 5)
Keith Connolly (Fianna Fáil) - 1,279 (elected count 13)
Mary Callaghan (Social Democrats) - 1,152 (elected count 14)
Anthony Connaghan (Sinn Féin) - 870 (elected count 14)
Caroline Conroy (Green Party) - 985 (elected count 14)
Cathleen Carney Boud (Sinn Féin) - 825
Andrew Montague (Labour Party) - 772
Sean Tyrrell (Fine Gael) - 756
Bernie Hughes (Independents 4 Change) - 519
Andrew Keegan (Solidarity-People Before Profit) - 378
Martin Matthews (Sinn Féin) - 372
Rose Emmett (Sinn Féin) - 360
Cathie Shiels (Workers Party) - 279
Diarmuid MacDubhghlais (Independent) - 261
Linda Greene (Independent) - 185
Lucy O’Connor (Independent) - 180

Cabra–Glasnevin: 7 seats

Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fáil) - 3,218 (elected count 1)
Neasa Hourigan (Green Party) 2,163 (elected count 1)
Gary Gannon (Social Democrats) - 1,662 (elected count 9)
Cieran Perry (Independent) - 1,483 (elected count 12)
Séamas McGrattan (Sinn Féin) - 1,127 (elected count 15)
Colm O’Rourke (Fine Gael) - 823 (elected count 15)
Marie Sherlock (Labour Party) -773 (elected count 15)
Áine Clancy (Labour Party) - 808
Siobhan Shovlin (Fine Gael) - 751
Seán McCabe (Independent) - 645
Declan Meenagh (Labour Party) - 632
Paul O’Farrell (Sinn Féin)- 488
Rita Harrold (Solidarity-People Before Profit) - 419
Hannah Lemass (Fianna Fáil) - 345
Stephen O’Loughlin (Independent) - 324
Micheál Kelliher (Independents 4 Change) - 249
Sarah Louise Mulligan (Independent) - 168
Cormac Newton (Workers Party) - 117

Clontarf: 6 seats

Damian O’Farrell (Independent) - 3,545 (elected count 1)
Donna Cooney (Green Party) - 2,840 (elected count 1)
Deirdre Heney (Fianna Fáil) - 2,680 (elected count 4)
Naoise Ó Muirí (Fine Gael) - 2,139 (elected count 7)
Jane Horgan-Jones (Labour Party) - 2,059 (elected count 8)
Catherine Stocker (Social Democrats) - 1,344 (elected count 9)
Cathal Haughey (Fianna Fáil) - 1,633
Jeff Johnston (Fine Gael) - 1,522
Bernard Mulvany (Solidarity-People Before Profit) 798
Ciarán O’Moore (Sinn Féin) - 722
Michael Paul Burke (Independent) - 406

Donaghmede: 5 seats

Tom Brabazon (Fianna Fáil) - 2,051 (elected count 2)
Daryl Barron (Fianna Fáil) - 1,539 (elected count 9)
Mícheál MacDonncha (Sinn Féin) - 1,490 (elected count 9)
Terence Flanagan (Fine Gael) - 1,206 (elected count 9)
Lawrence Hemmings (Green Party) - 1,027 (elected count 9)
Paddy Monahan (Social Democrats) - 957
Shane Folan (Labour Party) - 850
Michael O’Brien (Solidarity-PBP) - 832
Maria Mulvany (Fine Gael) - 641
Suzanne McDonnell (Fine Gael) - 629
Niamh McDonald (Ind) - 562
Jo Tully (Solidarity-PBP) - 377
Proinsias Ó Conaráin (Aontú) - 354

Kimmage–Rathmines: 6 seats

Patrick Costello (Green Party) - 3,283 (elected count 1)
Mary Freehill (Labour Party) - 1,786 (elected count 7)
Anne Feeney (Fine Gael) - 1,447 (elected count 7)
Pat Dunne (I4C) - 1,680 (elected count 9)
Tara Deacy (Social Dems) - 1,196 (elected count 9)
Deirdre Conroy (Fianna Fáil) - 1,065 (elected count 9)
Peter Dooley (Solidarity-PBP) - 935
Ruairí McGinley (Ind) - 785
Patrick Kinsella (Fine Gael) - 763
Michael Mullooly (Fianna Fáil) - 750
Samantha Long (Independent) - 734
Fearghal Donnelly (Sinn Féin) - 720
Ray McHugh (Sinn Féin) - 635
Garrett McCafferty (Ind) - 193
Sarah Lipsett (Ind) - 141

North Inner City: 7 seats

Ciarán Cuffe (Green Party) - 1,386 (elected count 1)
Christy Burke (Ind) - 1,105 (elected count 8)
Joe Costello (Labour Party) - 945 (elected count 12)
Ray McAdam (Fine Gael) - 815 (elected count 15)
Nial Ring (Independent) - 764 (elected count 15)
Janice Boylan (Sinn Féin) - 661 (elected count 15)
Anthony Flynn (Ind) - 608 (elected count 15)
Belinda Nugent (Sinn Féin) - 537
Éilis Ryan (Workers Party) - 485
Gillian Brien (Solidarity–PBP) - 419
Imran Khurshid (Fianna Fáil) - 389
Ellie Kisyombe (Social Dems) - 312
Carol Deans (Social Dems) - 248
Denise McMorrow (Fianna Fáil) - 233
Declan Hallissey (Sinn Féin) - 211
Brian Mohan (Fianna Fáil) - 140
Joseph McGucken (Ind) - 73
Neil Armstrong (Ind) - 34
Marcin Czechowicz (Ind) - 24
Marius Marosan (Ind) - 21
SG Raja Sekhar Reddy (Ind) - 12

Pembroke: 5 seats

Hazel Chu (Green Party) - 4069 - (elected count 1)
James Geoghegan (Fine Gael) - 1931 (elected count 2)
Dermot Lacey (Labour Party) - 1790 (elected count 2)
Paddy McCartan (Fine Gael) - 1391 (elected count 7)
Claire O’Connor (Fianna Fáil) - 1374 (elected count 7)
Linda O’Shea Farren (Fine Gael) - 844
Síomha Ní Aonghusa (Solidarity–People Before Profit) - 495
Larry Kenna (Sinn Féin) - 210
Simon Cox (Independent) - 201

South-East Inner City: 5 seats

Claire Byrne (Green Party) - 1,961 (elected count 1)
Chris Andrews (Sinn Féin) - 1,019 (elected count 4)
Kevin Donoghue (Labour Party) - 584 (elected count 9)
Danny Byrne (Fine Gael) - 675 (elected count 10)
Mannix Flynn (Ind) - 548 (elected count 10)
Annette Mooney (Solidarity–PBP) - 461
Elizabeth Watson (Fianna Fáil) - 374
Sarah Durcan (Social Dems) - 341
Susan Gregg Farrell (Sinn Féin) - 257
Sonya Stapleton (I4C) - 228
Jacqui Gilbourne (Renua Ireland) - 172
Maria Bohan (Fianna Fáil) - 238

South-West Inner City: 5 seats

Michael Pidgeon (Green Party) - 1,765 (elected count 1)
Tina MacVeigh (Solidarity–PBP) - 938 (elected count 6)
Rebecca Moynihan (Labour Party) - 891 (elected count 6)
Michael Watters (Fianna Fáil) - 837 (elected count 6)
Críona Ní Dhalaigh (Sinn Féin) - 799 (elected count 6)
Eoghan Howe (Fine Gael) - 645
Jen Cummins (Social Dems) - 608
Ammar Ali (Fianna Fáil) - 577
Damien Farrell (Éirígí) - 512
Tony Murray (Renua Ireland) - 140
Patrick Coyne (Ind) - 86