Greater 'vote splintering' likely in Mayo due to record election field
With 73 candidates in the field for seats on Mayo County Council and lots of permutations as regards possible results, the counting process, as always, will be time consuming and challenging.
However, John Condon, returning officer, is unfazed by the challenge.
John is vastly experienced having presided as returning officer at Mayo elections for nigh on 40 years.
He happily briefed The Connaught Telegraph about the upcoming count process for the local electoral areas (LEAs) in Mayo.
On Saturday morning (June 8) processing and counting of votes for the Mayo LEAs will begin, with 30 seats to be filled.
Two areas in the Royal TF Hotel - Ruby Room and Velvet Room - will be used as count locations. Between 50 and 60 count personnel will be deployed there.
Although it hasn’t been officially announced which of the six LEAs will be counted first it is likely to be Castlebar, which has the highest number of candidates, 19, vying for six seats.
Once Castlebar is done and dusted, Ballina (16 candidates for six seats) is likely to be next. The smaller LEAs, Claremorris, Swinford, Westport and Belmullet, will be next in line for attention, although not necessarily in that order.
Last time around (2019) Castlebar was completed first.
“It (Castlebar) took all day Saturday," John Condon recalls. “In addition to that we counted two of the smaller areas."
Last time the Mayo count was completed in the early hours of Monday morning. That timescale is possible next month but not definite, he says.
He said: “It may or may not (happen this time). That is what we managed to do in 2019 but it really depends on what way the votes are cast.”
One difference between now and 2019 is the larger number of candidates, which will likely result in a greater splintering of votes.
Asked if 73 candidates is a record for council elections in Mayo, he said: “It is certainly the highest number of candidates over the past 25 years.”
Any recounts will slow the process.
“Recounts are slower than an original count,” he explained. “In a recount you go through everything in microscopic detail trying to determine if there are any errors. If errors are found you have to decide whether they affect the result.
“If a candidate is losing narrowly they have a right to seek a recount. The whole process is open and transparent.”
As the Mayo County Council count progresses the count for the Midlands North-West Constituency will take place in the adjacent Royal TF Theatre.
As returning officer for the vast and newly expanded constituency, Marian Chambers Higgins (Galway County Registrar) will have in the region of 200 count staff at her disposal.
The Midlands North-West result may not be known until Wednesday, June 12, at the very earliest.