Labour councillor Annie Hoey elected to Seanad
Labour councillor Annie Hoey has become the first Meath candidate to be elected to the 26th Seanad.
The Laytown/ Bettystown councillor from Beamore in Drogheda was elected today on the 20th count with 94,186 votes. She will fill a seat in the Agricultural panel.
Reacting to the news she said:
“It’s a bit surreal. It’s a bit of a usual situation to watch yourself getting elected on the internet at home with your dogs washing each other’s ears beside you!
“I’m thrilled and really excited. I put myself out there and I take opportunities as they arise and I think it’s vitally important that we have young progressive voices in our national parliament.
Acting as a voice for young people is one of the reasons the Labour councillor decided to run for the Seanad as she explains:
“Young voices particularly are sorely lacking and I have always been a champion of getting progressive young voices particularly women elected so I said I’d put myself in there.
“I think it’ s a great space to try and continue the work that I was doing whether that was with student unions, referendums or at a council level, I don’t think the work changes they are all just different mediums to be able to do this work.
“I want to be a voice for young people, a champion for worker’s rights and I think being an advocate for dignity and autonomy and support for marginalised people.
"One of the functions of the Seanad is to offer scrutiny to legalisation, I think it’s very important that you have that second body that is able to do that.
"I campaigned during my student union days to retain the Seanad, little did I know this would happen.
"I would like to see reform with things like the graduate panels and opening that up to more people. I think it’s crazy who gets to vote on it based on if you went to second level education.
"I think it’s important to have a functioning, effective upper house to work with our lower house."
The counting of votes is continuing today with three remaining Meath candidates running - Cllr Sharon Keogan of Duleek, an independent member of Meath County Council and Cllr Sharon Tolan (Fine Gael) of Bettystown have been nominated to contest the Industrial and Commercial panel.
Shane Cassells, who lost his Dáil seat in the General Election, will contest the Labour panel.