Little change in Killarney as party loyalties set to hold

FEAR of losing their seats may be giving sleepless nights to Fianna Fáil councillors countrywide but the party should have no such concerns in the enlarged Killarney electoral area.

Boundary changes have given the area an additional seat which should ease the party’s fears.

Fianna Fáil currently have two seats in Killarney and have adopted a conservative strategy by fielding two strong candidates in Tom Fleming and Brian O’Leary.

In 2004, Cllr Fleming was way ahead of the field with a poll-topping 3,038 first preferences and looks likely to repeat the feat again, moreover since he has gained ground in his local Castleisland area following the redrawing of the boundaries.

Colin Miller was the second FF councillor elected last time. However, he is not seeking re-election and Fleming’s running mate is Killarney town councillor Mr O’Leary, an unsuccessful candidate in the 2004 county council elections.

With a tight, two-candidate ticket, Fianna Fáil should hold their two seats.

Fine Gael are poised to gain a seat in Killarney. Currently, the party have one councillor in the area, John Sheahan, who was co-opted to the seat held by his brother, TD Tom Sheahan, after he had to vacate it under dual mandate regulations.

Mr Sheahan is accompanied on the ticket by Cllr Bobby O’Connell, of Castleisland, a newcomer to the Killarney area.

A councillor since 1991, Mr O’Connell was, initially, in west Kerry and then in the Tralee area before his latest move to Killarney due to boundary changes.

“I’m coming from a fairly solid base in Castleisland, but I’ve lost about half of my vote from the last time, around 800 votes, because of the redrawing of the boundaries. It means that I have to move into new territories to gain the additional 1,000 votes that I need to get elected.”

However, given the anti-government climate, Mr O’Connell said he was “hopeful” of getting elected this time.

Three sitting independent councillors in Killarney — Brendan Cronin, Michael Gleeson and Danny Healy-Rae — are again seeking re-election.

Though second behind Mr Fleming in the first count, last time, Brendan Cronin has taken advertising in local newspapers to counter talk about other political and opponents that “Cronin’s seat in safe”.

He has told his supporters not to be misled or fooled by “these cheap and dangerous political tactics by my opponents.”

Danny Healy-Rae is also campaigning strongly, but is reported to be hitting turbulence because of family support for Fianna Fáil.

Though he claims to be candidate hardest hit by boundary changes, including the loss of his home base in Kilgarvan, tenacious Mr Healy-Rae is expected to hold on, while both other independents are also expected to be re-elected.

Candidates pressing hardest to get elected to the county council for the first time should include Marie Moloney, Labour, Donal Grady, Independent, and Lynn Ní Bhaoighealláin, Sinn Féin.

Killarney had, in recent decades, been a Labour stronghold following the emergence of the late deputy Michael Moynihan, but the party has gone into decline in the area and does not have a Labour county councillor, at present.

In 2004, two Labour candidates got 1,898 first preference votes, 11% of the poll, between them.

This was almost 600 votes short of the quota and shows the magnitude of the task facing Ms Moloney as a solo candidate.

However, she should gain from the expected swing against Fianna Fáil and optimistic Labour party workers are giving her a chance of causing an upset.