‘It’s all to play for’ says Ballyjamesduff poll topper

Cllr Shane P O'Reilly was elected on the first count after securing over 1,874 votes.

Shane P O’Reilly (II) has taken the first seat on the Ballyjamesduff Municipal District after topping the poll on the first count this evening. It was Cllr O’Reilly’s first outing as an Independent Ireland candidate following his departure from Fianna Fáil after the last Local Elections in 2019.

He was first elected to Cavan County Council in 2004. With 1,875 votes he exceeded the quota by 174 votes and was deemed elected. Speaking to the Anglo Celt, Cllr O’Reilly said his victory was “a massive win” for the people of Mullagh and the surrounding area. “I’m just the face,” he continued before adding that “they are the ones who have put their faith in me in every single election”.

With regard to newcomer Angela Gaffney who lives in the same area as Cllr O’Reilly and ran on the Sinn Féin ticket, the seasoned local politician highlighted how he focused on the people that he knew believed in him and focused on that while out campaigning.

“I had another candidate on top of me there in Mullagh; Angela Gaffney - who is a great, great friend of mine for many years,” he said. “She ran for Sinn Féin and I want to congratulate her because she did really, really well.

"Angela is an absolute lady and at the end of the day, we got what we got and I am just so happy. I am also happy for my sisters, brothers, my wife and my kids who couldn’t wait for daddy to be elected so they can jump and cheer, and do whatever they want to do.”

Meanwhile, Cllr O’Reilly says his success “is the people’s success” and he pointed to his “loyal” friends and family who have been with him every step of the way over the last 20 years. “They have stuck with me through thick and thin; they have been with me on the good days and bad ones, and I have had a couple of bad ones when I just about managed to scrape through. But I got there and it was all because of them.”

Cllr O’Reilly is also one of three Independent Ireland candidates that has been elected so far in Local Elections nationally. He is also confident that the group will elect two MEPs following the count in the EU Elections which gets underway in Castlebar tomorrow.

“I intend to go to Castlebar tomorrow; I’m actually a replacement for Ciarán Mullooly should he be elected so I’ll be there tomorrow. Independent Ireland has put a lot of work into getting Ciarán across the line and hopefully he will. But it’s all to play for and it’s all to play for here in Cavan as well.

“Behind every single candidate there is a family, a group of friends, a group of loyal supporters and all of that is a part of politics that people don’t see. It can be tough; elections are tough; and it has been a tough eight weeks but at the end of the day, I got there and I’m very happy to have gotten on as well as I have gotten on.

“Any person that puts their name on a ballot paper should be so proud of themselves and today will be good days for lots of other people besides myself. What we need to do from now - and into the next five years - is put our politics aside and go into the council chamber on June 21, have a conversation with the other elected members and ensure that we get the work done for the people of Cavan who have elected us to do it.”

Before concluding, Cllr O’Reilly confirmed his intention to run for Independent Ireland in the Cavan/Monaghan Constituency in the upcoming General Election which is expected to be called in October.