New look for Donegal County Council

Donegal County Council meets today in Lifford but there will be three notable absentees following the election to the Dáil at the weekend of councillors Thomas Pringle, Padraig MacLochlainn and Charlie McConalogue.

As the county’s three new TDs prepare to take their seats in the 31^st Dáil, speculation will now turn to who their replacements will be in the council chamber in Lifford – and there’s might not be the only seats to fill.

There were some suggestions at Saturday’s count that Labour’s Jimmy Harte will be encouraged to seek a Senate seat following his strong showing in Donegal North East, with some speculation that Labour could seek some of the Taoiseach’s Senate nominations as part of any coalition deal.

Whether Enda Kenny would like to grant a nominated seat to a candidate who left Fine Gael in a high-profile split though remains to be seen and it is more likely that he would reward long-serving councillor Bernard McGuinness if a Senate nomination were to come to Donegal.

Of course it remains a possibility that councillor Harte could seek election to the Senate and councillor McGuinness could still receive a nominated post – leaving two more seats to fill on the council.

It will be interesting as well to see who the parties choose to fill the vacant seats. Fianna Fáil’s Paul Canning was pipped at the end in the last local elections in Inishowen when Labour’s Martin Farren – but he is based in Newtowncunningham in South Inishowen and Charlie McConalogue is based in the north of the peninsula.

Sinn Féin could also choose to nominate Padraig MacLochlainn’s running-mate from the last election – Sean Ruddy – but may also look to former Buncrana Town councillor Daren Lalor or former Buncrana candidate Ciaran McGuinness. And of course they could bring two new faces to politics in Donegal by choosing different people for MacLochlainn's seats on Donegal County Council and Buncrana Town Council.

Padraig MacLochlainn celebrating with supporters
 at the count in Letterkenny on Saturday.
Speculation will now turn to who gets his seats on
Donegal Town Council and Buncrana Town Council.

Independent Thomas Pringle has already nominated his director of elections, John Campbell to take his place on the council, but with the possibility of as many as five seats to fill, some attention will surely focus on whether seats of democratically elected candidates should be filled by co-option instead of election.

Meanwhile there is every possibility that there will be more Donegal candidates still in election races in the weeks ahead with Brian O’Domhnaill most likely to seek re-election to the Senate.

The question remains though if he’ll be joined in a Senate race by Mary Coughlan or former Senator Cecilia Keaveney.

Who gained most from FF slump in Donegal?

While at first glance it could appear as if Sinn Féin benefitted most from the dramatic slump in support for Fianna Fáil in Donegal, the figures would indicate that all the other main parties in the county improved on their showing in 2007 and with Thomas Pringle taking a seat in Donegal SW, perhaps it was the independents who gained most of all.

Both Pearse Doherty in Donegal SW and Padraig MacLochlainn in Donegal NE came extremely close to taking a seat in the 2007 General Election and certainly the Fianna Fáil slump helped them as they both topped the poll and took seats for Sinn Féin.

But there were improvements for Fine Gael too despite what many considered was the risky strategy of running two candidates in Donegal North East.

In fact John Ryan polled remarkably well for Fine Gael with 4,657 first preferences and for a while was being suggested by some as an outside bet to take a second seat for FG in Donegal North East.

As it turned out the improved performance in terms of votes still brought Fine Gael just two seats – one in each constituency returning the two sitting TDs Dinny McGinley and Joe McHugh - but they will be more than happy with their showing.

Labour meanwhile are likely to be disappointed, despite making significant gains on their showing last time out.

While Frank McBrearty saw his vote slip back from his recent by-election outing, his total of first preferences was still higher than the 2007 performance of Seamus Rodgers who polled just 1,111 first preferences.

Jimmy Harte meanwhile was in the battle for a seat until the death in Donegal North East, but just couldn’t make up the ground against Fianna Fail’s Charlie McConalogue. Harte’s showing was way better than the performance of Siobhan McLaughlin in 07 for Labour, and indeed on his own showing at that time when he ran as an independent.

It is believed that Harte might have fared better had there not been so many independents in the field with the 1,876 votes garnered in particular by Letterkenny-based candidate Dessie Shiels believed to have scuppered his chances.

In Donegal SW however it was all about the independents as Thomas Pringle provided one of the biggest upsets of the entire election by unseating Mary Coughlan and taking the third seat.

The county councillor had declared after the recent by-election that judging on his showing there he felt he could take Mary Coughlan’s seat and he was proved right.

His remarkable 5,845 first preferences was more than the combined vote of the four independents who had contested the election in 2007 in both constituencies in Donegal.

Between them Jimmy Harte (then an independent), Ian McGarvey, Arthur McGuinness (all in Donegal NE) and John Doherty in Donegal SW took only 2,553 votes.

In contrast – helped greatly by Thomas Pringle’s massive first preferences - the eight independent candidates in Donegal between them this time took a whopping 13,675 first preferences, a signal perhaps of a protest vote against the government, but no doubt Labour at least will think, ironically allowing Fianna Fáil to nip in and take a seat after all.

Dramatic slump in Fianna Fáil vote in Donegal

As the dust settles in the wake of yesterday’s historic events in Donegal, much of the focus will centre on the Fianna Fáil slump and the fact that Tánaiste Mary Coughlan became one of the most high-profile casualties of the election.

On examination it is clear that the decision to field two candidates in Donegal South West certainly hampered any hopes Fianna Fáil had of taking a seat there, while the decision not to add a second candidate in Donegal North East appears justified with the election of Charlie McConalogue.

But there can be no doubt about the extent of the slump in support. In 2007 the two candidates in Donegal South-West – Mary Coughlan and Pat the Cope Gallagher – took more votes between them (20,136) than the entire vote across Donegal this time around (16,358).

Elected with a surplus on the first count in 2007, Mary Coughlan had 10,530 first preferences then compared to the 4,956 she took this time around.

And her running mate Brian O’Domhnaill fared equally dismally taking 4,789 first preferences this time compared to the 9,606 that saw Pat the Cope Gallagher elected with ease on the second count in 2007.

In Donegal North East there was also a huge slump in Fianna Fáil support, but there the single candidate strategy paid off when Charlie McConalogue pipped Jimmy Harte for the last seat without reaching the quota.

However when it is considered that Fianna Fáil had two TDs elected in Donegal North East last time and effectively three the time before that (when Niall Blaney was IFF) the shift in the power base is evident even in Donegal North East.

Last time out Fianna Fáil ran three candidates in Donegal North East – Jimmy McDaid, Niall Blaney and Cecilia Keaveney – and between them polled 19,374 first preferences.

In contrast the single Fianna Fáil candidate Charlie McConalogue took just 6,613 first preference votes this time in Donegal North East and while it was enough to see him elected, there were already concerns being expressed yesterday about the consequences such a dramatic slump could have for the next local elections – particularly in the Letterkenny and Milford electoral areas.

In terms of the numbers Fianna Fáil took 39,510 first preferences in Donegal in 2007, compared to 16,358 first preferences in both constituencies in 2011.

Donegal SW Tally Figures Box by Box

Haven't yet managed to get my hands on the Excel file of the tally figures from Donegal Sw so here is a pic of the figures taken from today's Donegal on Sunday newspaper which has excellent coverage of the counts in both Donegal constituencies.

Eighth Count Donegal NE

Distribution of Joe McHugh's surplus

Harte (LAB) + 1,088    7,219
McConalogue  + 731  8,976

McConalogue elected without reaching the quota

Donegal North East 8th Count

Harte (LAB)              + 485   6,131
McConalogue (FF)  +734  8,245
McHugh (FG)         +3,318   12,049

Joe McHugh Elected

McHugh has a surplus of 2,569

Difference between Jimmy Harte and Charlie McConalogue is 2,114.
Next count will end the counts in Donegal NE

7th Count Donegal North East

Donegal North East. Distribution of  Dessie Shiels vote. 

Jimmy Harte    (LAB) + 845 to 5,646; 

Charlie McConalogue (FF) +256 to 7,511; 

Joe McHugh (FG) +584 to 8,731; 

John Ryan (FG) +105 to 5,081; 

John Ryan Eliminated

Tally figures box by box Donegal North East

A chance if you vote in Donegal North East to look at the tally figures in your polling booth

Donegal North East 6th Count

Donegal North East. Distribution of Ian McGarvey vote. 

Jimmy Harte    (LAB) + 441 to 4,801; 

Charlie McConalogue (FF) +191 to 7,255; 

Joe McHugh (FG) +485 to 8,147; 

John Ryan (FG) +266 to 4,976; 

Dessie Shiels (IND) +306 to 2,605.

Result in Donegal SW

Thomas Pringle has been elected in Donegal SW along with Fine Gael's Dinny McGinley. The Independent candidate did not reach the quota but with 10,173 was too far out of reach of FF Brian O'Domhnaill who had polled better than Tanaiste Mary Coughlan who had been eliminated in the fourth count.


View the result here on

http://www.rte.ie/news/election2011/results/donegal-south-west.html

Fifth Count Result

Donegal North East. Distribution of Dara Blaney vote. 


Jimmy Harte    (LAB) + 216 to 4,535; 
Charlie McConalogue (FF) +248 to 7,064; 
Ian McGarvey  (IND) +244 to 1,653; 
Joe McHugh (FG) +138 to 7,662; 
John Ryan (FG) +66 to 4,950; 
Dessie Shiels (IND) +214 to 2,299.

Fourth Count Donegal NE

Fourth Count

Distribution of MacLochlainn’s Surplus

Blaney Dara                            (IND)    + 10   1,327

Harte Jimmy                            (LAB)    + 18  4,319

McConalogue Charlie             (FF)       +  21  6,816

McGarvey Ian                         (IND)     + 10  1,409

McHugh  Joe                          (FG)        + 11 7,524

Ryan John                               (FG)        + 13  4,884

Shiels Dessie                           (IND)       + 22  2,085

Non transferable   0

Some Pics from Don NE

Photos as Padraig MacLochlainn is elected in Donegal NE

Second Count Donegal SW

Results from second count Donegal SW

McGinley    (FG)      9,128
Pringle     (IND)        7,031
Coughlan   (FF)         5,172
O'Domhnaill  (FF)     5,147
McBrearty    (LAB)   2,882
McCahill      (IND)    2,037

MacLochlainn Elected 3rd Count Donegal NE

Third Count Donegal NE

Distribution of Betty Holmes Votes

Blaney Dara                            (IND)    + 68   1,317

Harte Jimmy                            (LAB)    + 139  4,301

MacLochlainn Padraig            (SF)      +  235  9,585

McConalogue Charlie             (FF)       +  134  6,795

McGarvey Ian                         (IND)     + 103  1,399

McHugh  Joe                          (FG)        + 145 7,513

Ryan John                               (FG)        + 161 4,871

Shiels Dessie                           (IND)       +  2,063

Non transferable   52

Second Count Donegal NE

Distribution of Ryan Stewart and Humphrey Murphy's votes

Second Count Donegal NE

Blaney Dara                            (IND)    +    21   1249

Harte Jimmy                            (LAB)    +   72    4162

Holmes Betty                          (IND)     +  47    1197

MacLochlainn Padraig            (SF)      +    72       9350

McConalogue Charlie             (FF)       +  48     6661

McGarvey Ian                         (IND)     +   9    1296

McHugh  Joe                          (FG)         +  38     7368

Ryan John                               (FG)        +   53      4710

Shiels Dessie                           (IND)       +  27     1903

Non transferable 22

Eliminated – Betty Holmes

Donegal North East First Count

Official 1st Count Result Donegal North East

Electorate      59084

Total Poll     38324

Spoiled Votes   406

Total Valid Poll     37918

Seats: 3

Quota:    9480

Blaney Dara                            (IND)        1,228

Harte Jimmy                            (LAB)       4,090

Holmes Betty                          (IND)      1,150

MacLochlainn Padraig            (SF)       9,278

McConalogue Charlie             (FF)     6,613

McGarvey Ian                         (IND)   1,287

McHugh  Joe                          (FG)      7,330

Murphy Humphrey                   (GP)     206

Ryan John                               (FG)      4,657

Shiels Dessie                           (IND)     1,876

Stewart Ryan                           (IND)      203

Donegal South West First Count

First Count result from Donegal South West


Electorate - 64,568
Poll - 43,595
Invalid votes - 332
Valid Poll - 43,263
Seats - 3
Quota - 10,816


Coughlan (FF)         4,956
Doherty (SF)           14,262
Duffy (GP)                527
McBrearty (LAB)    2,209
McCahill (IND)      1,831
McGinley (FG)       8,589
O'Domhnaill (SF)   4,789
Pringle (IND)         5,845
Sweeney (IND)        255

Transfers will be vital

With the first count expected in Donegal North East between 5pm and 6pm and shortly in Donegal South West transfers are going to be vital before the third seats are filled in both Donegal constituencies and already it looks as if Tánaiste Mary Coughlan could lose her seat in Donegal SW.

As predicted by many Sinn Féin will romp home at the top of the poll in both Donegal NE and Donegal SW with Padraig MacLochlainn set to join Pearse Doherty in the 31st Dáil.

Fine Gael have polled extremely well in Donegal North East with the showing of John Ryan impressing many at the count centre in Letterkenny today. He remains an outside bet for the third seat behind Joe McHugh, but most analysts are suggesting that Fianna Fáil's Charlie McConalogue will succeed.

Labour's Jimmy Harte isn't out of the race just yet but has a lot of ground to make up and will need huge transfers if he is to take a seat now.

Meanwhile in Donegal SW Pearse Doherty and Fine Gael's Dinny McGinley look set as predicted to take seats but there will be a battle for the last seat with Thomas Pringle looking like he will cause one of the biggest upsets in the country by taking a seat in Donegal SW.

Final tally Donegal SW

Final tally estimates - Doherty 13929, McGinley 8380, Pringle 5795, Coughlan 4918 


O Domhnaill 4715, McBrearty 2175, McCahill 1863, Duffy 525, Sweeney 240

Final Tally Donegal North East

Blaney (IND) - 1,225

Harte  (LAB) - 4,092

Holmes  (IND) - 1,157

MacLochlainn (SF) - 9,339

McConalogue (FF) - 6,554

McGarvey (IND) - 1,383

McHugh (FG) - 7,286

Murphy (GP) - 198

Ryan (FG) - 4,598

Shiels (IND) - 1,857

Stewart (IND) - 207

Tally Figures Donegal NE

Only a few boxes left from Milford electoral area to tally, will update with final figures as soon as possible

Blaney (IND) - 958

Harte  (LAB) - 3,411

Holmes  (IND) - 1,019

MacLochlainn (SF) - 8,323

McConalogue (FF) - 6,163

McGarvey (IND) - 799

McHugh (FG) - 5,861

Murphy (GP) - 165

Ryan (FG) - 4,541

Shiels (IND) - 1,464

Stewart (IND) - 201

Update Donegal NE

With 52 of 60 boxes open in Inishowen

Blaney (IND) - 245

Harte  (LAB) - 926

Holmes  (IND) - 534

MacLochlainn (SF) - 4,334

McConalogue (FF) - 4,039

McGarvey (IND) - 27

McHugh (FG) - 1,233

Murphy (GP) - 68

Ryan (FG) - 3,889

Shiels (IND) - 120

Stewart (IND) - 156

Update on election Donegal NE

Tally figures 44 boxes of 60 open in Inishowen

Blaney (IND) - 241
Harte  (LAB) - 732
Holmes  (IND) - 488
MacLochlainn (SF) - 4,221
McConalogue (FF) - 3,684
McGarvey (IND) - 26
McHugh (FG) - 1,067
Murphy (GP) - 53
Ryan (FG) - 3,306
Shiels (IND) - 88
Stewart (IND) - 144

Early Tally figures - Inishowen boxes

With around 20 boxes open in Inishowen, Sinn Fein's Padraig MacLochlainn, as expected is polling strongly in Inishowen with around 30% of the first preferences.

Fianna Fail's Charlie McConalogue is polling around 28% with Fine Gael's John Ryan next with around 26% of the first preferences.

Time to get out and vote

People always give out about politicians. That, I think, is just the way of the world. But when you look at the events in Egypt or Libya in recent weeks, people in Ireland should be thankful at least that we do have a democratic system and people have the opportunity to have our say at the ballot box.

That's why it is important to use your vote today.

But of course, for one reason or another, many people won't.

Some will have good reason, but those who don't because they are just too lazy - should refrain over the next four years from making comment on the state of the country or the services provided by government departments.

Today you have an opportunity to be constructive with your criticism. An opportunity to vote - to have your say in how the country should be managed.

Don't waste that opportunity - go out and vote.

Round up

Islands voting done and dusted

Voting took place today on Donegal's offshore islands, but does anybody else think it's strange that, in this day and age that still needs to happen.

I mean, it's not as if these islands are that far off the coast that the necessary ballot boxes etc couldn't be transported there and back on the same day as the rest of the country goes to vote.

No doubt those on the islands will be happy enough to get the whole thing over and done with, but would they really care if they had to wait another day or two and go to the polls with the rest of the country?


Unhappy campers

Those in the camp of some of Donegal's independent candidates were less than happy this week with the coverage they have received from the national media, claiming that the big parties have been given priority.

No doubt independent candidates up and down the country in various constituencies will have similar tales to tell and the reality is that the bigger parties - those with the seemingly wider support base and - will always get priority when it comes to national coverage.

That's why of course it is vital to maintain a vibrant local media around the country where independent candidates can have their voices heard.

In that respect Donegal is undoubtedly one of the best served counties in Ireland, and the election coverage to date - and no doubt over the weekend and into next week will demonstrate once again the superb local media we have here in the county.

Declaration of independents...

In many cases the best chance an independent election candidate has of ever taking a seat in a general election is when they have a cause to crusade for that people felt passionately about - something the people in Donegal South West saw not too long ago when Tom Gildea upset the applecart to take what had been a Fianna Fáil seat.

Of course there have been independents elected who were not seen as single issue candidates, but more often than not these have been seasoned politicians, and quite often former members of one political party or another.

This election in Donegal sees no less than five independent candidates in the field in Donegal North East, while three have entered the race in the South West.

But what of their chances?

Well, if the polls and the tipsters are to go by, only one of the eight – Thomas Pringle in Donegal South West – stands any outside hope of taking a seat.

Interestingly enough, as a long serving county councillor he is also only one of two of the eight independent candidates with any track record in politics – the other being councillor Ian McGarvey in Donegal North East, possibly the election’s oldest candidate at 81.

A recent poll in the Tir Concaill Tribune newspaper suggested that in Donegal North East however only health candidate Betty Holmes would poll any significant number of votes.

And in health, she certainly has a cause to crusade with in Donegal. However, despite her association with Donegal Action for Cancer Care, her campaign is a personal one and therefore is not likely to gather the kind of momentum she’d need to cause an upset.

Had she thrown her hat into the ring in advance of the last general election however, things might well have been different. At that time the issue of cancer care in particular seemed to be much higher on the agenda and a huge protest march in Letterkenny when upwards of 10,000 people took to the streets was still fresh in the memory.

On that point it was interesting to hear the comments made at the weekend by local haulier John McLaughlin, when he suggested he might have won a seat in this election had he decided to stand.

His comments came after he’d witnessed huge support for a protest in Letterkenny on Saturday against the rising cost of fuel – something he says has been driving people out of business across the country.

Mr. McLaughlin takes his protest to Dublin this week and is gathering momentum and support across the North West for the day of protest that will cause traffic chaos in the capital.

His message, he said yesterday, is to let the government know – the outgoing one and the incoming one – that ordinary people cannot afford to pay any more.

Judging by the level of support at his rally in Letterkenny at the weekend, it’s a message that he has managed to send out loud and clear which is why those in the race for seats in Donegal are probably glad that he left it too late to throw his hat in the ring this time.

Here's Mr McLaughlin's interview after the rally on Saturday, courtesy of Wallace Media.

A matter of geography

During the week a Fine Gael canvasser at my door – the first I had seen in this election campaign – suggested to me that it was difficult to get people enthusiastic about this election.

And part of the reason, he suggested, is the fact that Raphoe – where I live and where he was canvassing – is now part of Donegal South West and were it not for the fact that Labour’s Frank McBrearty is based here – we’d be even further on the fringes of the constituency and even less enthusiastic about an election.

In fairness, Raphoe was transferred to Donegal South-West before the last General Election in 2007, but that does not mean that the transfer sits easily with the people here.

And if that is the case in and around Raphoe then what of the people in St. Johnston who have been moved this time and who this Friday will cast their votes in Donegal South West.

Located in the most easterly part of Donegal, one local from St. Johnston told me recently that “the only place we’re south-west of is Derry!”

In all, four electoral divisons within the Stranorlar Electoral area have been transferred to Donegal South-West this time as part of the changes, increasing the population in the constituency by over 2,300.

And it is population – not geography – that has led to the boundary revisions.

If emigration continues as it has been recently from Donegal – further population reductions could lead to a single constituency in Donegal and a reduction in the number of TDs as well.

In total twenty-four constituency changes have been made across the country since the 2007 elections and could prove significant in some battles for seats next Friday. While national campaigns should be based on national issues – as the old saying goes all politics is local.

On that note it was interesting to see a poster from Labour’s Jimmy Harte in Letterkenny this week with the words “vote local” on the bottom.

With many suggesting he is in the running for a seat in Donegal North East, the Labour man is trying to make the most of the fact that he is the best known and most experienced candidate from Letterkenny in the field now – even if he no longer is the only one.

Of course he knows only too well the consequences of boundary changes, having stood as an independent candidate in 2007 when a large swathe of potential votes around his home town of Raphoe and nearby Lifford, were transferred to the South West.

As it turns out his Labour Party running mate, Frank McBrearty, is certain to sweep up the majority of the votes in that area and through much of the Finn Valley now. Incidentally, some of his posters declare that he is ‘standing up for the Finn Valley.’

But the importance of geography is not just confined to the South West as the jockeying to have candidates on the ballot from Inishowen and then from Letterkenny would indicate in Donegal North-East.

The reasoning of course is the fact that in huge constituencies like we have in Donegal geography is important. While the population may not be huge, all candidates are aware that a handful of votes can often make a big difference.

It’s a long way from Convoy to Carrick in Donegal South-West, just indeed as it is a long trek from Malin Head to Milford in the North-East – but should the geography matter that much?

Probably not in all fairness, and were constituency boundaries be drawn on that basis, we would end up with constituencies more akin to those in the local elections than our current Dáil constituencies and we’d have Inishowen, Stranorlar, Letterkenny, Glenties and Milford all with their own candidates and sure everybody would be happy.

This might not be needed though if radical reform of local authorities took place, giving local government more authority and more money to deal with local issues.

Perhaps then those running for the Dáil would be able to base their campaigns on national issues not local ones and candidates might not have to face questions on the same issues (potholes for instance) that local election candidates were answering two years ago.

And perhaps then people would not be as concerned about where a candidate is from and more focused on their policies, proposals and what they stand for.

But for now, expect geography to play its part and the tally figures when they come on Saturday to reinforce once again that old saying about all politics being local.

(For details on the boundary changes see - http://www.constituency-commission.ie/docs/con2007.pdf)

Fianna Fáil face battle in Donegal

Updates resume!

First of all sincere apologies to anyone regulalrly checking in for news of the election in Donegal for the lack of posts over the past two days. I spent most of Wednesday and Thursday in Dublin and despite trying to keep up to date with the happenings in Donegal, I didn’t manage to get online to update the blog – after discovering that even in the capital sometimes wi-fi access can be far from perfect. Anyway there has been loads of stuff going on..here’s a wee synopsis with a promise of more regular updates over the course of the final week.

Poll has Harte and McConalogue in battle

A poll in Thursday’s Tirconaill Tribune news paper has suggested that Fianna Fáil’s Charlie McConalogue may have to battle it out with Labour’s Jimmy Harte for the last seat in Donegal North East.

The poll has Sinn Féın’s Padraig MacLochlainn ahead with 28% of the vote, ahead of Fine Gael’s Joe McHugh in second place on 20% leaving councillor Harte and councillor McConalogue in a dead heat on 15%

Carried out by telephone last week, the poll surveyed 800 voters in Donegal North East and indicates that of the independent candidates in the field only health candidate Betty Holmes – on 7% is polling reasonably well.

The poll is the first to be carried out in Donegal for this election and no doubt will be carefully examined by the respective candidates and their supporters over the coming days.

While the figures may not prove exactly correct come polling day, the Tribune poll reinforces the local opinion that in reality only four candidates – MacLochlainn, McHugh, McConalogue and Harte will be in the race for the seats in Donegal North East.

Friday's Donegal News front pages suggests that Jimmy Harte and Thomas Pringle are both making a late charge for Fianna Fáil seats. If they were to win it could leave Donegal without a Fianna Fáil TD at all in the Dáil. Who would have thought that possible a few years ago when five of the six TDs were effectively FF (Niall Blaney was Independent FF).

Tánaiste’s seat in jeopardy?

Having had the spotlight to itself for the bye-election before Christmas, things seem relatively quiet in Donegal South West this time around compared to the drama unfolding in Donegal North East. But it doesn’t mean that there won’t be drama there and there has been growing speculation over the past week that Tánaiste, Mary Coughlan, could be in danger of losing her seat.

Some analysts have suggested that the Tánaiste’s Fianna Fáil running mate Brian O’Domhnaill is running her close for first preferences in Donegal South West while it has also been suggested that independent candidate Thomas Pringle could be well-placed to sneak in and make ground if a split Fianna Fáil vote endangers both candidates.

Labour’s Frank McBrearty meanwhile is likely to benefit from additional areas like St Johnston included from the Stranorlar Electoral area in Donegal South West but it is believed his strong showing in the Finn Valley may not be replicated further west in the county.

Most analysts predict that Sinn Féin’s Pearse Doherty will once again top the poll in Donegal South West with Fine Gael’s Dinny McGinley also set to take a seat. 

Debates, debates and umm...debates

While the focus across the country today has been on the leaders debate on RTE last night, debates among the candidates in Donegal have kicked off in a big way this week.

Highland Radio who - over the years have set a high benchmark for superb election coverage from run-up to count-day - began their series of debates today hosted by Donal Kavanagh.

Four of the candidates from Donegal South-West were in studio today, with the remaining South-West candidates due to debate on Friday. 

And Highland have been extremely helpful to those who missed the debates at the time (like myself) by providing a play-back link on their web site here - Highland Debates

Tomorrow (Wednesday) and Thursday candidates from Donegal North-East will be in studio for the highland debates having already been in Carndonagh today for a debate in Inishowen on ICR the community radio station for the peninsula.

Ocean FM radio in Donegal South West are also running debates this week so the candidates from Donegal South West who were in studio in Letterkenny today will be back on air tomorrow (Wednesday) when Andrea Gilligan will anchor the Donegal South West election debate on Ocean FM on North West today from 9.00-12pm with all nine candidates.

If that weren’t enough candidates in both constituencies will also stand before members of Donegal Youth Council at debates in Letterkenny and Donegal Town to hear the concerns of the county’s young people and respond to their questions. Those debates kick-off in Donegal North East tonight and will be chaired by local journalist and blogger Paddy Duffy.

Letterkenny Chamber of Commerce has also organised debates for candidates in Donegal North East at 11am in the Station House Hotel on Friday 18^th February and they are keen to have members of the public come along.

Donegal candidates prefer Facebook to Twitter

This month’s election is being hailed as the first in Ireland where social media is playing a huge and important role but it would not appear to be that high up on the agenda for most candidates in Donegal

And it would seem that when the candidates in Donegal (in both constituencies) do embrace social media, they much prefer Facebook to Twitter.

Indeed, of the Donegal candidates who are listed as being on Twitter, few actually tweet on a regular basis.

Donegal North East candidate Betty Holmes – a relative newcomer to both Facebook and Twitter was active on both social media outlets over the weekend, but perhaps the most active candidate on the social media front in either Donegal constituency is Labour’s Jimmy Harte.

The Letterkenny-based councillor not only includes regular updates on his Facebook page and more recently on Twitter, he also has his own blog page that is updated with the latest news from his campaign.

It is perhaps not too surprising that Inishowen-based candidate Ryan Stewart is also active online since he came to prominence through a Facebook campaign opposed to Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT).

Like Jimmy Harte, he too has his own blog page with updates on his campaign, but it seems hasn’t yet embraced the world of Twitter.

In Donegal South West Tánaiste Mary Coughlan hasn’t a presence on either Facebook or Twitter, but it is interesting to note that he running mate Senator Brian O’Domhnaill has recently begun tweeting updates on his campaign.

Sinn Féin’s Pearse Doherty is among the country’s top politicians in terms of the number of friends he has on Facebook. He is also on Twitter but tweets infrequently. His colleague in Donegal North-East, Padraig MacLochlainn is well ahead of the rest of the candidates in that constituency in terms of Facebook friends but has no Twitter presence.

What does any of this translate to however? For instance the number of Facebook friends a person has is no barometer for the number of votes they might get.

So why do they bother?

Well for one, the use of social media is an effective method of getting up to date news and information out – almost instantaneously.

Perhaps more than anything this is why the media has become fascinated with Twitter in particular and in the run up to the election, the heave in the Fianna Fáil party and the political events that followed were reported widely and almost instantly on Twitter.

In Donegal the news that Niall Blaney had decided not to stand again in Donegal North East flew around Twitter like wildfire before the doors had barely closed at the party convention.

So with Twitter candidates can get news out quickly (if they can keep their message short) while  candidates can update their status on Facebook with latest news from their canvas - but it is interesting to note that different approaches are being taken.

Some candidates have set up fan pages, while others have established personal pages, which usually means, you must send a friend request to them before you can view their page. Whether this would put off casual potential floating voters seeking information on a candidate remains to be seen.

Aside from the candidates of course, the media’s fascination with new social media has meant that Twitter and Facebook are being mentioned more than ever - and for this election Twitter certainly has stolen a march.

Indeed many of current affairs programmes discussing events in the run up to the election either now show tweets on screen from viewers or in the case of some tv and radio shows - have a section to discuss the tweets.

Much of the weekend’s Twitter focus was on the Valentine’s Day e.card spamming that emanated from Fine Gael’s headquarters, not the first time that Fine Gael have been blasted for their online activity in the run up to this election.

In that respect, perhaps Dinny McGinley, Joe McHugh and John Ryan, have been right all along to stay pretty quiet online…

(For analysis of the election in Social media terms, check out www.candidate.ie)

Some Donegal election bits and bobs

The first canvasser

As the countdown continues towards the General Election, it has been interesting to read several tweets from different parts of the country from people who have yet to see a candidate on the canvas.
Several people I have spoken to in Donegal have also said they are yet to be canvassed - although in fairness both Donegal constituencies are huge in terms of their geography and reading their tweets and following their Facebook sites it would seem that most of the Donegal candidates are busy and out on the canvas.
That said the first canvasser to arrive at my door came - not from any political party - but from Youth Defence.
They are an anti-abortion group who have launched a national ask the question campaign urging voters to seek pro-life guarantees from their local candidates.
They have handed out leaflets which I'm sure will make their way around the county and the country.
I'll let people make up their own minds on whether they think such a campaign should form part of the election race.

Out on the road

Whatever about people not seeing their candidates too much yet, there can be no doubt at all that there are plenty of candidates' vehicles on the road since the start of the election campaign.

One of the more interesting ones spotted to date is the ambulance urging votes for Fianna Fáil candidate Charlie McConalogue in Donegal North east.

If you spot an interesting campaign vehicle on the road in Donegal, why not send it on to donegalvoter@gmail.com

Inishowen key battleground in Donegal North East

Having long described itself as the forgotten part of the forgotten county, the Inishowen peninsula will step into the spotlight on February 26 when votes for the Donegal North East constituency are counted.

And that’s because the votes cast in the peninsula are set to have a huge bearing on which of the 11 candidates in Donegal NE will finally take the three seats.

Five of the eleven candidates are based in the Inishowen electoral area – Charlie McConalogue (FF), Padraig MacLochlainn (SF), John Ryan (FG), Ryan Stewart (Ind) and Betty Holmes (Ind) and with their boxes the first to be opened on count day, they will give the earliest indications of how things are going in the constituency.

With so many candidates in the field from the peninsula, it will be extremely interesting to watch the voting patterns and determine how they might affect the final outcome.

There can be no doubt that the people of Inishowen feel they should have a TD with none of the three outgoing TDs coming from the peninsula.

After all that’s why Fianna Fáil members in Inishowen had held an ‘unofficial’ convention to select Charlie McConalogue as their candidate. Even they could not have predicted the events that followed in relation to Niall Blaney’s withdrawal, but the upshot of it all has seen Cllr McConalogue as Fianna Fáil’s sole candidate.

But the Fine Gael members in the peninsula wanted their man in the field too. So they pressed to have John Ryan added to the ticket after Joe McHugh had initially been selected as the sole candidate.

Of the five Inishowen candidates it is widely-believed that Padraig MacLochlainn of Sinn Féin and Charlie McConalogue are the two most likely to be in the shake-up when it comes to filling the seats – but that’s not to say the other candidates won’t have a bearing.

John Ryan’s arrival in the field for instance could be hugely significant for Joe McHugh the only sitting TD in the constituency who is seeking re-election. McHugh swept to victory and topped the poll in 2007 – but that was as the sole Fine Gael candidate – and the votes garnered by Councillor Ryan this time will certainly shake things up for Fine Gael.

For many Sinn Féin’s Padraig MacLochlainn is favourite to win a seat and he is sure to poll very strongly in Inishowen. But he did so last time out and despite battling to the bitter end he was finally pipped at the post by Niall Blaney of Fianna Fáil for the last seat. Whether Dara Blaney’s late entry to the field will have any impact on Padraig MacLochlainn’s showing outside Inishowen remains to be seen.

Charlie McConalogue’s campaign got off the ground amidst uncertainty and disillusionment from within the Fianna Fáil ranks in Donegal North East – and that’s before he started knocking on doors with a public hugely angry with the outgoing government. Popular in Inishowen, people will watch with interest to see if he can secure enough first preferences there to help haul him over the line.

Ryan Stewart’s first foray into politics may well not be his last and even if he does not succeed in winning a Dáil seat don't be surprised to see his name again when the next local elections roll around.

His votes and those of fellow independent Betty Holmes will play their part in deciding where the three seats finally go – and a future blog post will focus on the importance of transfers in both constituencies.

But before the transfers even begin there can be no doubt that the battlefield of Inishowen will play a vital role in deciding who will fill the seats for Donegal North East – the question up there will be... can the peninsula get a TD – or perhaps even two this time!

Let’s get ready to rumble – candidates get set for Donegal debates

Candidates in both constituencies in Donegal will get an opportunity next week to hear the concerns of the county’s young people and at the same time go head to head to outline and debate their respective policies.

Donegal Youth Council has organised the debates in both electoral constituencies to engage youth councillors and other young people from across the county in the political process.

Freelance journalist and blogger Paddy Duffy who will chair the debates, said he is excited about the prospect of hearing the issues the young people will raise and what the candidates say in response.

Paddy Duffy who will chair the debates

“I've not only been encouraged by the reaction of the candidates to what we're doing but the enthusiasm the youth councillors have shown towards the event as well. These young people can't even vote in this election but their interest in and grasp of the issues are truly amazing,” he said.

The debates will kick off on Tuesday night (February 15th) in the Public Services Centre in Letterkenny for Donegal North East, with the debate for the South West pencilled in for the following night (Wednesday 16th) in the Public Services Centre in Donegal Town.

All declared candidates in both constituencies have been invited to take part and most have agreed.

It is understood however that the Donegal NE Green Party candidate Humphrey Murphy declined the invitation to take part in the debate.

The format of the event will see the candidates questioned on their policies and other issues by youth councillors and other young people in the audience.

“This promises to be a genuinely informative and illuminating debate. Which makes a change,” Paddy Duffy concluded.