Although Fine Gael councillor Hildegarde Naughton looks certain to become the next mayor of the city, efforts are being made to remove any possible obstacles in her way.
It is understood that Fianna Fáil’s councillor Peter Keane and Independent councillor Donal Lyons will not vote for Cllr Naughton when she is put forward for the position of mayor next month.
As a result efforts are being made to persuade them to abstain from voting at the meeting and it is understood that progress is being made in this regard.
The issues arises because the Fine Gael-Fianna Fáil-Independent, ex-PD pact in the Galway City Council numbers nine, while the Labour-Independent left bloc has six. If councillors Keane and Lyons voted against Cllr Naughton the results would work out at 8-7 vote against her. However if they abstain, Cllr Naughton would win by 7-6. The latter scenario, involving the abstentions is the one expected to take place.
