"Democracy is dead in Louth and Dundalk" says Maeve Yore

Independent councillor Maeve Yore took issue with the voting pact system at Tuesday’s meeting of Dundalk Municipal District, saying that “democracy was dead in Dundalk and Louth.”

Councillor Yore, who topped the poll in Dundalk- South at the recent local elections, took issue with a voting pact which saw Fianna Fail’s Sean Kelly reelected to the role of Cathaoirleach.

Councillor Kelly was elected by seven votes to five, with Yore abstaining.

Councillor McCann of Sinn Fein received votes from her party colleagues as well as from Green Party councillor Marianne Butler while Councillor Kelly received backing from members of his party along with votes from councillors John Reilly and Robert Nash of Fine Gael and Independent councillor Ciaran Fisher.

Councillor Yore said: “Democracy is dead in Dundalk and Louth and the will of the voting public disrespected and ignored by the FG/Lab/FF/majority ex party/Ind Pact who spent the last two weeks since polling day ringing and pressurising other councillors - some, who are new and unaware of the dishonourable party politics - to join the pact and disregarding the attempt to introduce the d’Hondt system in Louth where each of the democratically elected councillors would have a position on a Committee or as Chair and where Louth would have a voice locally, regionally and nationally.”

The d’Hondt system is a highest averages method for allocating seats in proportional representation electoral systems. It is designed to ensure that political parties gain seats in proportion to the number of votes they receive.

The independent councillor asked for “clarification and confirmation,” recorded in the Minutes of the AGM that each of the 29 councillors will be treated equally and fairly by the Council Executive “regardless if they are in the pact and that the peddling of the narrative that you will get nothing done as a councillor unless you are in the pact is dismissed outright by the Council Executive?”

Councillor Emma Coffey of Fianna Fail took issue with “comments made about the pact system” saying: There was comments made on Friday, twenty-nine councillors had the opportunity to come back which we did. I don’t intend to dwell on them. 

“But what I will say for the record, pact or no pact, the executive or councillors we all try to work together in relation to the betterment of the community, and to imply that the pact has an upper body or an upper will on getting replies back or otherwise I would see as disingenuous and headline grabbing.

“And in particular, Councillor Yore, you indicated that, to your own credit, over the years you have done extremely hard work for the people of Louth and that’s through your own raising and diligence towards the executive and them coming back to you. So I don’t think pact or otherwise that any individual here who is elected on a mandate, there will be a slight to them whether pacts are formed or not formed.”

Expressing gratitude for all the well wishes, Councillor Kelly “acknowledged the frustrations felt by some members and I can understand the frustration at times. But I want to make it abundantly clear to you that as Cathaoirleach here in Dundalk, I will remain impartial to all and fair to all.

“We’ve all been given a mandate here and we’re all here because we love this town and north Louth dearly and we all have a job to do, and I hope we can all work together over the next five years.”