Tralee Town Council has elected a Labour councillor as mayor. The new mayor of Tralee, Cllr Miriam McGillycuddy, a solicitor and law lecturer, takes over from another woman, Cllr Norma Foley (Fianna Fáil), to head the 12-member council.
Ms McGillycuddy pledged to prioritise job creation "wherever and however we can get it".
There are over 3,000 unemployed in Tralee and its environs. Ms McGillycuddy said while the town might not get the "big factories" it once had attracted, there was still a lot of potential for small business start-ups .
She is one of a handful of councillors to support the location of a large Marks & Spencer store at an edge-of-town shopping centre in Tralee. She did so on the basis it would create more than 100 secure jobs.
A majority of the council rejected the development, however, saying they feared for the town centre.
The subject has created bitter division in the town.
Last night she called for late-night opening of shops and stores in the town centre to create an atmosphere for tourists akin to that of Killarney and Kenmare.
Meanwhile, Killarney last night elected Independent councillor Niall O'Callaghan as mayor with support from Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil. Cllr O'Callaghan, succeeds Cllr Sheila Casey (FG).
On Friday, Independent councillor Michael Healy-Rae, son of the TD, is expected to take over as mayor of Kerry as part of an ongoing pact with Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin members.