Rural battle to decide final seat in Westport

WESTPORT ELECTORAL AREA

Seats: 4

Candidates (9): Peter Flynn (FG); Karen Gallagher (SF); Christy Hyland (IND); Keira Keogh (FG); Chris Maxwell (II); Niall McCormack (IFP); Brendan Mulroy (FF); Peter Nolan (GP); John O'Malley

WHEN it comes to the main issues affecting voters in the Westport Electoral Area it is a case of take your pick. If you are living in the town it is about the lack of affordable housing, for the businesses and hospitality sector it is all about rates, while between Belclare and Murrisk, the new Greenway is on everyone's lips.

The issues affecting people in the Westport EA are wide and ranging and for the nine candidates hoping to win one of the four seats available trying to please everyone is almost an impossible task.

In the 2019 local elections, there was a surprise of sorts with the election of two Independents, Christy Hyland and John O'Malley, alongside Peter Flynn of Fine Gael and Brendan Mulroy of Fianna Fáil.

Following this election, the two main parties, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael seem to have come to the conclusion that their core vote is no longer guaranteed. As a result they have both reduced the number of candidates and in the process they seem to be concentrating their efforts on the urban area.

Fianna Fáil decided to go for the safety first approach in only selecting sitting councillor Brendan Mulroy to safeguard their seat while Fine Gael are going with two town candidates in sitting councillor Peter Flynn and newcomer, Keira Keogh.

Gamble

For the first time, the big two will not be running a candidate based in a rural part of the constituency but it seems to be a gamble they are both prepared to take.

As the sole Fianna Fáil candidate, Cllr Mulroy should be guaranteed a seat even if the party is not the force they once were in the area.

He polled over 1,100 votes in 2019 which was enough to see him elected on the last count and without a running mate he should pick up a couple of hundred extra first preferences to get him close to the quota to get him over the line.

Fine Gael's strategy of running two town-based candidates is an interesting one with many still wondering if it is an inspired move or one of political folly.

How Peter Flynn's vote holds up is what every political anorak will be most interested in when the boxes are opened on June 8. Flynn's unequivocal support for the preferred route option of the Greenway from Westport to Murrisk has surprised many of his competitors who are convinced his stance will lose him votes. While his core vote is in the town, he picked up the third most votes in the Murrisk box in 2019 and those number ones can be the difference between winning and losing.

The party have also decided not to divide up the constituency with Flynn and Keogh given free reign to canvass where they want. Both are based in the town, with Keogh's family owning the Helm on the Quay, so both will be fighting over the same votes. Keogh is the only woman in the race and this is bound to benefit her but will it be enough to leapfrog Flynn?

With the two main parties deciding to go with town-based candidates the question is who will be best placed to take advantage and hoover up the sizeable rural vote.

READ: Everything you need to know about the Local and European Elections

Louisburgh conundrum

Louisburgh has not had a councillor since 2014 with many people in the west of the county claiming the area is forgotten. Independent Ireland candidate Chris Maxwell should be best placed to pick up a sizeable vote in the area.

In the 2019 election, Maxwell who was running for Fianna Fáíl and Austin Francis O'Malley for Fine Gael picked up a combined 18 percent of the vote, the majority of which came from Louisburgh boxes.

For Maxwell to win a seat, he has to convince traditional Fianna Fáíl and Fine Gael voters that a councillor in the area is more important than party loyalty.

However, he will also have to eat into a sizable chunk of the Independent vote which went to Christy Hyland and John O'Malley which elected them last time.

Hyland topped the poll last time around and there is nothing to suggest he did anything in the last five years for him to lose that vote while O'Malley may be in an even stronger position than in 2019 to claim the rural vote.

Sinn Féin candidate Karen Gallagher will be looking to increase the party's presence in the constituency but like Green Party Peter Nolan she is unlikely to feature in the final showdown.

The battle for the final seat will likely be between Maxwell and O’Malley and it could go down to the wire.

Verdict: Christy Hyland (Ind), Brendan Mulroy (FF), Peter Flynn (FG), John O'Malley (Ind)