LE2024 Meath: The Story of the Trim Count
All six councillors have now been elected in the Trim electoral area with two sitting councillors- Niamh Souhan (FG) and Trevor Golden (Ind)- losing their seats.
The two newcomers are Fianna Fáil's Padraig Coffey, a butcher from Enfield, and Dave Boyne of Aontú, an engineer from Trim.
Boyne is the second Aontú candidate to be elected to Meath County Council with sitting councillor Emer Toíbín re-elected on the first count in Navan.
Fine Gael's Niamh Souhan was the first sitting councillor on Meath County Council to lose their seat.
The Enfield-based councillor was eliminated on the seventh count in the Trim LEA just after midday today. Enfield traditionally elects a councillor and this time the seat went to Padraig Coffey (FF).
The eighth count saw a final result in Trim with Aisling Dempsey (FF) reaching the quota to be re-elected. With just four candidates for three seats, sitting councillor Ronan Moore (Soc Dem) was re-elected without reaching the quota, and newcomers Dave Boyne (Aontú), and Padraig Coffey (FF) were also elected without reaching the quota.
Sitting councillor Noel French topped the poll achieving well over double the quota polling a remarkable 3,963 first preferences.
The former Fine Gael councillor turned independent was elected on the first count along with sitting councillor Joe Fox of Fine Gael who also exceeded the quota with 1,881 votes.
Sinn Féin's hopes of reclaiming a seat in the Trim Electoral Area were dashed as the party's second candidate Daithí McEvoy has been eliminated on the sixth count. Sinn Fein's other hopeful, Aoife Drew, was eliminated on the fourth count.
Other candidates to be eliminated were Tracy McEhinney of Labour after the second count, Luba Healy of Fine Gael was eliminated on the fifth count and Niamh Souhan on the seventh count.
In 2019, Noel French, then a Fine Gael candidate, achieved the highest first preference of any candidate in a Meath County Council election at 3,052 and this time round has managed to exceed that vote by another 900 votes.
A delighted Cllr French said: "I'm just very pleased and very honoured. I am privileged to be back to serve my people. I am extremely lucky that I have very kind, generous people who support me.”
Having run as a Fine Gael candidate last time round, the question had been how much of his vote was a Fine Gael vote and how much was a personal vote for the candidate. Cllr French said there are so many unknowns in elections, he didn't know what to expect.
“I didn’t expect it, it’s not only the unknown of leaving Fine Gael, it’s the unknown of elections. You never, ever know. You just don’t know. There are so many unknowns with it," he said.
Cllr Joe Fox achieved 1,881 first preferences to increase his vote by over 400 votes on 2019.
Cllr Fox said he was "delighted" to be elected on the first count and thanked his family, his supporters, and the people of south Meath who voted for him.
"It is a great honour to be re-elected. This is my third time to be elected and I am delighted for the people that supported me that I can continue the work I’m doing. To me it is a great honour to be elected to Meath County Council," he said.
TRIM ELECTORAL AREA
Electorate: 27,282
Total Poll: 11,986
Quota: 1,690
Spoiled votes: 162
Valid Poll: 11,824
Seats: 6
FIRST COUNT:
French, Noel (Ind) 3,963
Fox, Joe (FG) 1,881
Dempsey, Aisling (FF) 1,044
Boyne, Dave (Aontu) 895
Coffey, Padraig (FF) 833
Moore, Ronan (Soc Dem) 798
Golden, Trevor (Ind) 476
McEvoy, Daithi (SF) 426
Healy, Luba (FG) 414
Drew, Aoife (SF) 400
McElhinney, Tracey (Lab) 177
SECOND COUNT (Distribution of French's surplus)
Dempsey + 321 1,365
Boyne +264 1,159
Coffey +203 1,036
Moore +386 1,184
Golden +476 952
Healy +154 568
McEvoy +112 538
Souhan +171 688
Drew +90 490
McElhinney +96 273
Tracy McElhinney has been eliminated.
THIRD COUNT (Distribution of McElhinney's vote)
Dempsey + 47 1,412
Boyne +20 1,179
Moore +33 1,217
Coffey +19 1,055
Golden +30 982
Souhan +35 723
Healy +13 581
McEvoy +17 555
Drew +8 498
(No candidates elected or eliminated. Joe Fox's surplus will now be distributed)
FOURTH COUNT (Distribution of Fox's surplus)
Dempsey + 35 1,447
Moore +12 1,229
Boyne +13 1,192
Coffey +28 1,083
Golden +10 992
Souhan +45 768
Healy +41 622
McEvoy +4 559
Drew +3 501
Drew eliminated.
FIFTH COUNT:
Dempsey + 14 1,461
Moore +25 1,254
Boyne + 25 1,217
Coffey + 22 1,105
Golden +13 1,005
McEvoy + 340 899
Souhan + 6 774
Healy +15 637
Healy eliminated.
SIXTH COUNT (Distribution of Luba Healy's votes)
Dempsey + 117 1,578
Moore +100 1,354
Boyne + 34 1,251
Coffey + 10 1,115
Golden +64 1,069
Souhan +227 1,001
McEvoy + 18 917
McEvoy eliminated.
SEVENTH COUNT (Distribution of McEvoy's votes)
Dempsey + 43 1,621
Moore +203 1,557
Boyne + 191 1,442
Golden +118 1,187
Coffey + 36 1,151
Souhan +34 1,035
Souhan Eliminated
EIGHT COUNT (Distribution of Souhan's votes)
Dempsey + 189 1,810
Moore +120 1,677
Boyne + 60 1,502
Coffey + 288 1,439
Golden +95 1,282
Dempsey, Moore, Boyne and Coffey elected.