ELECTIONS 2019: The results are all in! Eugene McGuinness is sole elected Independent, John Coonan and Martin Brett win seats

THE results are all in and the people have spoken.

After two long days of counting, the final three seats have been filled on Kilkenny County Council.

And there’s another McGuinness on the local authority, but this time it’s Independent Eugene (brother of John and uncle of city poll-topper Andrew) who will enter the political fray as an elected representative in Kilkenny.

McGuinness was elected on the eleventh and final count, along with Fianna Fáil’s John Coonan and Fine Gael’s Martin Brett. Coonan was the only one of the remaining three that reached the quota.

But it completed a disastrous election locally for Sinn Féin, who had been praying Seán Tyrrell would snatch the last contested seat in the constituency. The party now does not have a single member on the local authority after David Kennedy was edged out in Callan-Thomastown.

With all the results now in, Fianna Fáil will occupy 11 of the 24 seats on Kilkenny County Council, followed by Fine Gael (9) and Labour (2).

They are joined by the Greens’ Malcolm Noonan and Eugene McGuinness, who is now the sole Independent on Kilkenny County Council.

There are just three women on the new-look local authority, including FG veterans Mary Hilda Kavanagh, Fidelis Doherty and FF newcomer Deirdre Cullen.

Kilkenny County Council 2019 – Your 24 Elected Members (and first preference votes)

Castlecomer:
Pat Fitzpatrick (FF) – 2,249
Mary Hilda Kavanagh (FG) – 1,955
Michael McCarthy (FF) – 1,951
John Brennan (FG) – 1,493
Michael Delaney (FF) – 936
Denis Hynes (Labour) – 1,407

Kilkenny City:
Andrew McGuinness (FF) – 1,860
Malcolm Noonan (Green) – 1,485
Joe Malone (FF) – 1,271
David Fitzgerald (FG) – 1,236
John Coonan (FF) – 698
Eugene McGuinness (Independent) – 826
Martin Brett (FG) – 479

Callan-Thomastown:
Peter ‘Chap’ Cleere (FF) – 1,949
Matt Doran (FF) – 1,839
Michael Doyle (FG) – 1,378
Patrick O’Neill (FG) – 1,399
Joe Lyons (FG) – 1,042
Deirdre Cullen (FF) – 862

Piltown:
Pat Dunphy (FG) – 1,579
Tomás Breathnach (Labour) – 1,516
Eamon Aylward (FF) – 1,103
Fidelis Doherty (FG) – 1,059
Ger Frisby (FF) – 970