EOGHAN Fahy’s son Rían probably wasn’t too happy to be spending his first birthday at the election count in County Hall last Saturday, but it was all worth it in the end as his dad took the sixth and final seat in the Carrigaline area.
Eoghan, who is from Passage West and works in the planning department in Cork City Council, will now be Sinn Féin’s sole representative on Cork County Council and his election is one of the few success stories for the party in the 2024 local elections.
Speaking to The Southern Star, Eoghan, who was standing in his first local election, said he was a bit anxious at the count.
‘We took a really good first preference vote of 1,353 and we were happy with that and had a bit of a cushion going into the official count, but it’s still nerve-racking until you get over the line,’ said Eoghan.
‘The positive thing is that we’ve taken a seat in Carrigaline and we are disappointed that we didn’t take more seats in the county. At least we have a representative on the Council now and I’m looking forward to working with my other colleagues on the Carrigaline Municipal District.
'It’s great, too, that Passage West has a councillor living in their area, following Marcia D’Alton’s decision to step away from politics.’
He also pointed that seven out of the 10 candidates standing in Carrigaline were standing in their first election, as both Fine Gael’s Jack White and Una McCarthy had been co-opted so hadn’t been elected.
As for Rían, his family are planning to celebrate his birthday in style next weekend.
Meanwhile, Sinn Féin candidate in the city, Joe Lynch, who has West Cork roots, took the fourth seat in Cork City South West area for Cork City Council last weekend.
