A real dogfight in Kanturk/Mallow
THE DOGFIGHT which will see just six bums on seats in the Kanturk/Mallow Municipal District will reach its crescendo on Friday, when voters go to the poll.
The Mallow Kanturk candidates have this time around not only got the task of pulverising their own neck of the woods, but equally so, since ‘Big Phil' undertook the boundary changes, the election hopefuls have also had to dip their hooves into the relatively unknown territory at the oter side of the new, larger district.
There are 12 candidates who each want to bag a seat. But with just six up for grabs, then, to borrow a popular Duhallow phrase, ' tidn't it plain,' there will be losers.
At present, in the old Kanturk area, Cllr Noel Buckley (FG), Cllr Gerard Murphy (FG), Cllr Timmy Collins (Ind), and Cllr Bart Donegan (FF) are sitting councillors. But with every local elections, comes the newcomers and the 2014 is no exception to the rule. Kiskeam's Bernard Moynihan is on the Fianna Fail ticket and Denis O'Brien is an independent candidate.
Looking at the Mallow region, Cllr Dan Joe Fitzgerald (FF), Cllr Noel O'Connor (FG), Cllr John Paul O'Shea (Ind) and Cllr Ronan Sheehan (Lab) are all hoping to also retain their seats.
Mixed into this, is the existing town councillor Melissa Mullane (SF) who is putting her shoulder to the wheel, as is a fellow newcomer, Grezezorz Zalewski, an independent.
Duhallow has consistently had a strong turn out for local elections and this is, no doubt, something that the local candidates will be hoping for on Friday. However, Mallow definitely has the edge in terms of concentration of voters.
The combined electorate of Kanturk/Mallow stands at 36,789 and it is them who will choose who will get a seat.
However, it should be noted that the transfers can be quite a tricky business, as second preferences are worked out percentage wise, which can become quite a minefield, and throw up surprises.
One thing is for certain, there will have to be losers among sitting councillors; how many remains to be seen.
Meanwhile, there’s a good chance for some new blood in the county council - but who?
The results start pouring in on Saturday.