Constituency wrap: Meath West

THE loss of two Fianna Fáil seats in Meath West, where Fine Gael won two, and the election of Meath’s first Sinn Féin TD since Liam Mellows in 1918, was the outcome of an astonishing count in this constituency.

The decision of former Fianna Fáil Minister Noel Dempsey to retire before the election meant that all bets were off in Meath West, but it was believed that the party’s second outgoing TD, Johnny Brady, had a chance of holding his seat. Mr Brady was first elected to the Dáil in 1997.

Instead, the poll-topper was Fine Gael’s outgoing TD, Damien English, elected on the third count with Ray Butler, a 45-year-old FG county councillor from Trim taking the third seat, without reaching the quota.

Sinn Féin’s Peadar Tobin, a 36-year-old management consultant from Navan, polled just under 7,000 first preferences and took the second seat without reaching the quota.