Burke, Barrett and Sheridan take final seats in marathon Mayo count
A marathon count in the Castlebar electoral area has drawn to a close this morning with the filling of the last three seats from the district to Mayo County Council.
Independent candidate Harry Barrett was successful at his third election attempt when he seized victory in the 14th count.
His transfer pulling power proved the key for him as his final haul of 194 from Martin McLoughlin ensured him of winning the sixth seat without reaching the quota of 1,877 with a return of 1,575.
Barrett, who served a term on Castlebar Town Council before it was stood down over a decade ago, is looking forward to bringing a wide range of community issues before the council over the coming years.
"My team and I put in an exhausting campaign - but it was worth it. I thank everybody who supported me and I promise to follow through on the issues I have been raising during the campaign," he said.
Fine Gael duo - outgoing Councillor Cyril Burke and Councillor Donna Sheridan - were also elected shortly before 8 a.m. today following a count lasting 19 hours.
It was a long time to wait to win a seat - but, like Barrett, they were both thrilled to have secured another term in office.
They were also delighted that their party retained three seats on Castlebar Municipal District, Councillor Ger Deere having won his seat some 12 hours earlier.
Independent candidate Stephen Kerr was in contention right to the end, losing out by a margin of 307 votes.
Kerr is likely to be a candidate in the general election later this year.
The seven Castlebar seats have now been filled and those elected are:
Michael Kilcoyne, Ind.
Ger Deere, FG.
Al McDonnell, FF.
Blackie Gavin, FF.
Cyril Burke, FG.
Harry Barrett, Ind.
Donna Sheridan, FG.
Two of the counts in the Mayo County Council elections are now completed - Castlebar and Claremorris.
The Belmullet count starts at 10 a.m. and the Swinford count at 2 p.m.
They will be followed by the Ballina and Westport counts later today.