Mayoral hopeful loses vote after FG colleagues abstain

Fine Gael is to review the position of two of its councillors who refused to support a party colleague in a mayoralty contest, over her backing of a rezoning proposal.

Cllr Lola O’Sullivan lost out on the position of mayor of Tramore in Waterford on Tuesday night when two Fine Gael colleagues on the town council, Anne-Marie Power and Maxine Keoghan, abstained from the vote.

Ms O’Sullivan was one of a number of Fine Gael members of Waterford County Council who in 2008 voted in favour of rezoning agricultural land outside Dungarvan, which was the subject of a Garda investigation and a ministerial caution.

The land was recently at the centre of a criminal trial at which former Fine Gael councillor Fred Forsey was found guilty of accepting corrupt payments totalling €80,000 from a property developer in 2006.

At Tuesday night’s meeting of Tramore Town Council, Ms Power — who voted against the rezoning motion in 2008 — said she was “unable to support” any councillor who voted in favour of rezoning a piece of land which was under Garda investigation at the time.

“The time has come when politicians and indeed politics must represent the highest standards of public life,” she said.

“As elected members we must always act in the best interest of the people we represent.”

Maxine Keoghan said: “The only choice I had was to abstain from voting for the position of mayor.”

Independent councillor Joe Conway was elected mayor of Tramore.

Both councillors fear they may now be expelled from Fine Gael as a result of their refusal to support the party’s candidate.

In a statement, Fine Gael headquarters said yesterday the party was “disappointed” by the outcome of the vote and “will be reviewing all aspects in due course”.

A source said Fine Gael “can’t afford” to discipline the two councillors involved, “because Fine Gael did nothing to the councillors who voted to rezone land under Garda investigation”.