No mix-up in voters minds as they elect Claire Murray!

There may have been two candidates on the ballot paper in the Edenderry Electoral Area with the very same name, Claire Murray, but there was no mix-up in the voters minds when it came to casting their ballots, with the Fianna Fail candidate being elected on the second count and becoming the first female Cllr on the new council.

Claire Murray, who is a practice nurse with 15 years experience, felt that if she was given a chance to be at the decision-making table she could achieve so much more for the people of North Offaly, and now she has been given that opportunity.

A great admirer of Countess Markievicz, and also of her two late grandmothers, whom she said were "very strong women" the Clonmore-based Cllr says she is passionate about "examining ways our local healthcare systems can be improved, and I have a particular interest in mental health."

One of the first people to offer their congratulations to the newly-elected Cllr at the Offaly Count Centre in Mucklagh was outgoing Fianna Fail Cllr, Declan Harvey, who will no doubt be joining her in the new council chamber when he is elected later today in the Tullamore Electoral Area.

Claire Murray received 1,134 first preference votes from the voters in the Edenderry Electoral Area and she received a whopping 227 votes from the distribution of Eddie Fitzpatrick's surplus to bring her up to 1,361, 111 votes ahead of the quota