Mayo man 'not downhearted' despite defeat in Galway City election

AN Achill native who ran as an Independent candidate for a seat on Galway City Council says he is not downhearted despite not winning a seat.

Kenny Deery, a native of Bunnacurry on Achill Island ran as an Independent candidate in the Galway City West Electoral Area for a seat in Galway City Council. The electoral area was dubbed the 'Group of Death' as the 16-candidate field contained seven sitting councillors with just six seats to play for.

The former CEO of Galway Chamber of Commerce received 400 first preference votes which equated to 4.6 percent of the vote. It put him in eighth position after the first count but he was unable to make up the ground and was eliminated on the 12th count.

Deery was seen by many people to have an outside chance of getting elected having had a high profile position in the Galway Chamber of Commerce and was an advocate for change in the way the council operates.

Commenting on his Facebook page after the election results were announced, Mr Deery thanked his campaign team and supporters for their support and for giving them his vote.

“After ten weeks of campaigning and almost three days of tense tallying and counting, my journey to be elected to Galway City Council in the West constituency has come to an end. Naturally, I wish that the outcome had been different, but I am not downhearted.

“On the contrary, I am enormously proud of what I and my Team4Change accomplished in such a short space of time. We met with thousands of people, on the doorsteps, in meeting rooms, at debates, events and in clubhouses. It was a privilege meeting those people and hearing their stories, frustrations and – in many cases – distress.

“In the end, people did not vote in sufficient numbers for the change we promised, but hundreds did. That shows that there is a desire for things to be different and for local government in our city to deliver better for the people

“Thank you to everyone who supported me throughout my campaign, especially my amazing campaign team: those who canvassed, put up posters, shared insights, advice and support in many practical ways. I am deeply grateful to them all for their loyalty and hard work,” he said.

The six sitting councillors - Donal Lyons, Clodagh Higgins, Alan Curran, John Connolly, Peter Keane and Niall McNelis – were all reelected and Deery wished them every success in their term ahead. “I know they want the best for Galway too and I hope that, collectively, they will be able to make our city a better place,” he said before adding that he will take time to reflect on what he does next.

“For me, it is time to first take a rest, then reflect and decide what comes next. My commitment to making Galway better has only been strengthened by the experience of this campaign, so whatever the future holds this will continue to be part of it,” he said.

Meath Local Elections

Meanwhile Fahy native Michael Gallagher was elected as a Sinn Féin councillor for the Kells Electoral Area in Meath County Council having lost his seat in 2019.

Gallagher was one of a number of high profile councillors who lost their seats in 2019 but last week was a better election for Sinn Féín in Meath. They increased the number of seats from three to six with Gallagher one of two party candidates to be elected in the Kells Electoral Area.

Gallagher received 1,258 first preference votes which equated to 8.4 percent of the vote at the first count and was elected at the 10th count alongside his colleague Peter Caffrey.

Michael and his family moved to Drumconrath in north Co Meath in 1969 when he was 12 years old as part of the land commission allocation of farmland in Meath to families from the west of Ireland.