Barbara Daly not ruling out another bid for council seat
A disappointed Barbara Daly has not completely ruled out making another bid to secure a seat on Offaly County Council after she was eliminated on the 10th count at the local election count in Mucklagh Community Centre this evening.
When asked if she would do it all again, she hesitated before replying "not today" but she is happy in the knowledge that there was "nothing more" she could have done to take a council seat.
"Like any candidate that is eliminated I am disappointed, but those are the vagaries of the political system, and that possibility exists for every candidate" she said following her elimination. "I could not have put in any more effort, either physically or mentally, into the campaign, I put everything of me into it, and after that it was over to the voter."
As a member of the Dooley family from Ferbane, and with her late father, Eddie Joe and her brother, Eamon, both long-serving Cllrs, Barbara Dooley said said her political pedigree is often referred to as "a dynasty" but added that she would never use the word dynasty to describe her family. "In fact I dislike that word, I was born in a council cottage to a father and mother who were born in cottages, there was no dynasty" she said "there was the support of the people of the Ferbane area."
At one point in this evening's count it appeared that perhaps the Dooley/Daly camp were looking for a recount, but Barbara Daly said "we are not in recount territory at 41 votes in my view we would be in recount territory at 20 to 25."
She said she knew at lunchtime yesterday that it was "going to be difficult" to get elected, but said it all comes down to "the order of elimination and geography" both of which played a part. "If the previous elimination had been of a different candidate I may have stood to gain" she added.
Barbara Daly secured 879 first preference votes, and was eliminated with 1,047 votes, just 41 votes behind Social Democrats candidate, Clare Claffey.
The elimination of Banagher-based Independent candidate, Jonathan O'Meara, after the 9th count and the transfer of 176 of his votes to Clare Claffey effectively secured Barbara Daly's fate, as she received just 35 of O'Meara's transfers.
At the time of her elimination, the second Fianna Fail candidate for the Birr area, Audrey Hennessy Kennedy, was 165 votes ahead of Barbara Daly, and looks poised to take one of three remaining seats in the Birr area.