Galway East: 3rd Count: Rabbitte edges closer

The distribution of Michael ‘Stroke’ Fahy’s votes has now been completed and Fianna Fail’s Cllr Anne Rabbitte and it pushed her closer towards the winning line.

She received 571 transfers and now is guaranteed to take the sole Fianna Fail seat in the constituency.

Of course the reason for this is that Fahy is a former member of the Fianna Fail party but left following a falling out with the hierarchy.

Meanwhile, the gap between Fine Gael’s Paul Connaughton and Ciaran Cannon has widened and it is becoming increasingly worrying for the Mountbellew man who was first elected in 2011 to succeed his father Paul snr.

Sinn Fein’s Annemarie Roche has now been eliminated and the counters are distributing her votes. According to the tallymen, she received a considerable number of ‘plumpers’ meaning she received number ones but those who voted for her did not continue a preference for any other candidate.

THIRD COUNT

Distribution of Michael Fahy IND votes

Canney Sean IND +359 9072

Cannon Ciaran FG +430 7650

Rabbitte Anne FF +571 7566

Connaughton Paul FG +153 6689

Keaveney Colm FF +312 5823

Higgins Lorraine LAB +288 5080

Roche Annemarie SF +193 3159

Roche eliminated