In 2004 Fine Gael won four out the six county council seats on offer in the Ballina electoral area.
The landscape has changed both physically and politically since Killala’s Jarlath Munnelly dramatically clinched the final seat in 2004 from Fianna Fáil’s Stephen Molloy after eight counts.
The changes to the physical landscape have been wrought by the report in 2008 of the Electoral Area Boundaries Committee which resulted in significant changes to the Ballina electoral area. Voters in Ballycastle and in parts of Kilfian and Lacken parishes have been transferred to the Belmullet electoral area.
You could say that the political landscape has also changed utterly since 2004. The collapse in support for the Government presents Fianna Fáil with political challenges not witnessed since Eamon De Valera’s Economic War in the 1930s. Fianna Fáil’s morale has been adversely affected by a slew of recent opinion polls which have the party at an all time low. However in terms of the Ballina electoral area poll topping Councillor Annie May Reape remains a racing certainty to head the poll on June 5, statistically she holds one of the safest Fianna Fáil council seats in Connacht.
Fine Gael fields four incumbents on its ticket. Cllr Eddie Staunton from Moygownagh is entering his third decade as a public representative, starting his career when the Nolan Sisters were top of the charts with ‘I’m in the Mood for Dancing’. A tough and pugnacious political operator, Staunton has been over course and distance many times in the past and had the honour of being Mayo’s first citizen in 2004-2005. If Staunton can consolidate his political base by winning the battle for votes in the Crossmolina district, his re-election should be secured. The key battle for Staunton will be to go to toe to toe with well resourced Fianna Fáil newcomer Michael Loftus in Crossmolina town.
Councillor Jarlath Munnelly from Killala was the undoubted success story of the last local elections with his against the odds win in Ballina ensuring that Fine Gael was in a position to take control of Mayo County Council. Munnelly has been a high profile advocate for the Killala, Kilfian, and Lacken communities and has since his election also concentrated heavily on Ballina town where his frequent newsletters have been a regular sight on kitchen tables and in letter boxes around the town. This time round, Munnelly faces having to do a “Jim Mitchell” on it and counteract a difficult boundary revision. He is central to Fine Gael’s plans to hold the four seats in Ballina and it is hoped by senior Fine Gael sources that Munnelly will poll particularly well in Ballina town.
Cllr Michelle Mulherin faces into this Local Election with the benefit of a very credible General Election campaign behind her in 2007. Despite being outpolled by Dara Calleary in Ballina town in 2007, Mulherin’s transfers secured a seat for John O’Mahony. Mulherin subsequently was defeated in the Seanad election. The fallout from the last General Election saw strained relations between her and her party colleagues, Mulherin will now want to put her last two electoral defeats behind her as she seeks re-election to Mayo County Council.
Cllr Seamus Weir from Knockmore completes the Fine Gael ticket and seeks re-election for a third term on Mayo County Council. A long standing Knockmore GAA stalwart serving as Cathaoirleach of the council in 2007/2008, Weir holds arguably the safest of the four Fine Gael seats and is a proven vote getter. His electoral performances bear testament to the cross party support he is capable of achieving and the high esteem his community in Knockmore holds him.
In conclusion, against the backdrop of changing boundaries and Fianna Fáil facing its greatest electoral challenge in a generation, everything points to Fine Gael maintaining its grip on the four seats it historically won back in 2004. Seasoned Fine Gael activists sound a more cautious note pointing to the fact that the four seats were won on the back of just 3.3 quotas. Fine Gael may need to increase its first preference vote across the Ballina electoral area in order to perform the same feat.
