Laois Count Centre – Live Blog

Written 2 years ago by Paul Downey

 

  • Sean Fleming (FF), Brian Stanley (SF) & Charlie Flanagan (FG) win all three seats in Laois.
  • Sinead Moore, Green Party candidate has been eliminated following the second count
  • Fianna Fail’s Sean Fleming is the first candidate to be deemed elected on the first count.
  • Count being held in St Mary’s Sports Hall, Portlaoise
  • Six candidates battling for three seats
  • First election in new Laois constituency following split of Laois Offaly
  • Outgoing TDs – Charlie Flanagan (FG), Sean Fleming (FF), Brian Stanley (SF)
  • It’s expected that Fianna Fail’s Sean Fleming will top the poll – according to final tally figures

 

Elected Laois candidates

Elected Laois candidates

 

20.05 That’s All Folks…until next time!

IMG_5875

 

20.00  Here’s your three elected TD’s  for Laois (l-r) Brian Stanley (SF), Charlie Flanagan (FG), Sean Fleming (FF)

Laois Elected

 

 

19.50

It’s all over in Loais. Charlie Flanagan, Fine Gael, Brian Stanley, Sinn Fein and Sean Fleming, Fianna Fail, have made their victory speeches:

19.30

And it’s all over…..

18.45

Results from the Third Count expected in the next 15 minutes

18.25

18.00 Following a second count here in Portlaoise, Green Party candidate Sinead Moore has been Officially eliminated. Her votes are now being distributed accordingly. Speaking to our reporter Michael Dunne, Ms. Moore said the campaign has been “a real eyeopener” for her: Listen below…

S. Moore cropped

 

17.45

17.20

16.55 Labour Senator John Whelan says he is “devastated” with his result in the Laois constituency. The Labour Senator says he won’t be seeking re-election to the Seanad. He gave us his reaction to today’s result: Listen below..

IMG_5849

 

 

16.00 Sean Fleming is raised above the shoulders of Fianna Fáil delegates as he is re-elected to Dáil Eireann.

Sean Fleming elected

 

15.56

 

15.40

15.05 With the first count result expected in the next hour, Green Party candidate Sinead Moore has conceded that she will not be taking one of three sets in Laois. Speaking to our reporter, she says the whole experience has been a real eye opener:

 

14.00 Sinn Féin’s Brian Stanley says he is happy that he appears to be polling well in the Laois constituency and in line for one of three seats:

13.40

13.19 With all 107 boxes open here in St.Mary’s Hall in Portlaoise, completed tallies from Fine Gael indicate that candidate Thomasina Connell has received 11% of first preference votes in the constituency. Speaking to us briefly, she says she is delighted with how she has polled:

 

13.09

 

12.57

Fianna Fail final tallies:

Thomasina Connell – 11.1% – 3,965

Charlie Flanagan – 21.5% 7,686

Sean Fleming – 36.2% – 12,908

Sinead Moore – 4% – 1,432

Brian Stanley – 20.3% – 7,251

John Whelan – 6.9% – 2,462

The party estimates that the quota will be 9,000.

 

12.36

It’s hard to swim against the tide – Niall Kavanagh, Director of Elections for Labour in Laois, says that John Whelan won’t be elected based on tally figures

 

12:12 Latest tallies from the Fianna Fáil party after analysing over 50% of boxes.

Tally sheet

 

11.09

 

11.oo

Fine Gael tallies – 37 boxes

Thomasina Connell – 11.4%

Charlie Flanagan – 20.87%

Sean Fleming – 34.4%

Sinead Moore – 4.44%

Brian Stanley – 21.12%

John Whelan – 7.87%

 

10.30

10:05

Early tallies from one box from Knockmay NS Portlaoise- 189 votes

Fleming, Sean (FF)- 58

Flanagan, Charlie (FG)– 44

Stanley, Brian (SF)- 30

Whelan, John (LAB) – 29

Connell, Thomasina (FG) – 15

Moore, Sined (GP) – 13

 

09.30

09:00 – Counting is now underway  at St.Mary’s Hall in Portlaoise.

 

08.50 

08:30 – Welcome to Midlands 103’s live coverage of the count in the Laois constituency.

Will Faulkner’s prediction:

LAOIS

The HSE still hasn’t published a draft plan for the future of Portlaoise Hospital, despite promising to do so in September, so outrage about an Emergency Department downgrade has been tempered by time. This is to the advantage of outgoing Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan, who will certainly top the poll. Fine Gael chatter about winning a second seat in Laois is mere fantasy – if it couldn’t be done with veteran councillor John Moran in 2011, the fresh faced Thomasina Connell won’t achieve it after five years of weakening party sentiment.

What she will do is dent the Monasterevin vote for John Whelan, who pitches himself as “the local man” and an “independent voice”. Tellingly, the Labour Party brand features less prominently. John will argue his outspoken record against grey haired old men in cabinet, his vehement opposition to wind energy developments and his unequivocal support for Portlaoise Hospital as evidence that he did not blindly tow the party line.

Knowing that Sean Fleming holds a safe Fianna Fáil seat, Senator Whelan’s campaign against Sinn Féin has been aggressive and negative in the extreme. If he is within 1,000 first preference votes of Brian Stanley, he reckons the third seat can be his. It won’t be. The Sinn Féin machine is too well polished, comfortably winning two council seats in 2014, while Labour narrowly clinched one.

Prediction:

Charlie Flanagan FG

Sean Fleming FF

Brian Stanley SF

Will Faulkner presents The Midlands Today Show, weekdays 9am-12pm. He was named in Ireland’s top three news broadcasters at the 2015 PPI Radio Awards.