Leas Ceann Comhairle vote ends in stalemate

The four way race for the €35,000-a-year position of Dáil vice chairman ended in a stalemate yesterday despite two hours of voting in the Dáil.

Party whips now expect that there will be another vote for Leas Ceann Comhairle next week, in which Fianna Fáil’s Pat ‘The Cope’ Gallagher and Fine Gael’s Bernard Durkan are now seen as the main contenders.

Several TDs abstained yesterday during the votes, including TDs with AAA-PBP and the Social Democrats, and their vote could be crucial for a candidate to win.