How it started ...
After 43 hours of sorting ballots, a long wait for a first count, followed by 13 more counts, 658 spoiled votes, the distribution of three surpluses, two miraculous medals recovered from ballot boxes and a lot of coffee, we have whittled down a field of twenty candidates and elected the final two TDs of the 2024 General election.
They are Brendan Smith and Niamh Smyth of Fianna Fáil.
We had hoped things would be wrapped after Count 13 earlier this evening but such was the size of Sinn Féin's Cathy Bennett's surplus after transfers from her party colleague Matt Carthy, it became a mathematical possibility that Sarah O'Reilly of Aontú could be elected if she received practically every transfer from Bennett, so a further count proceeded.
After Count 14, Niamh Smyth was deemed elected on 11,058 votes slightly ahead of Brendan Smith who was deemed elected on 10,886 votes - neither of them reaching the quota of 11,542 votes. Sarah O'Reilly of Aontú finished in sixth spot on 10,067 votes.
For people who are fans of watching how the single transferable vote system works, it is interesting to note that only three of the five TD who had the highest number of first preferences on Count 1, were elected.
They were Sinn Féin's Matt Carthy and Cathy Bennett and Fianna Fáil's Brendan Smith.
Robbie Gallagher of Fianna Fáil and Pauline Tully of Sinn Féin fell out of the Top 5 position as the transfers came in, while David Maxwell of Fine Gael and Niamh Smyth of Fianna Fáil moved up the rankings as candidates were eliminated.
How it ended ...
