Sprawling Mountmellick - Borris area might surprise in Laois local elections

The reform of local Government that was driven by former Minister Phil Hogan threw up some odd new local election areas that, arguably, did  not  deliver fairly for voters.

The creation of the Borris-in-Ossory Mountmellick District coincided with the scrapping of Mountmellick's town council. The democratic void created in the third biggest town in Laois has yet to be filled. 

  The only councillor who is Mountmellick-based is Fianna Fáil representative Paddy Bracken. He topped the poll in 2019 but no other candidate from the urban area came close to being elected.

While reform, arguably,  shortchanged the town, voters there have not come out in enough numbers to have more representatives.

The 2024 field of candidates points to a similar outcome for Mountmellick unless the candidates can persuade townspeople that they must have more voices in county hall. 

Cllr Bracken must  be a favourite to retain his seat. Paddy Buggy is contesting for Fine Gael and Bryan Corrigan is running for Labour. 

Sinn Féin's Lorna Holohan Garry has the benefit of being a Mountmellick native and based in Clonaslee.

Mr Buggy has many years of community involvement locally and across the county and has contested the local elections previously in Portlaoise. He'll be hoping that such experience will yield a votes dividend. Another advantage in his favour is being known in farming circles.

 Mr Corrigan is a newcomer to  politics and has set out a stall based on the need for change.

Ms Holohan Garry's  haul of number one votes last time around wasn't anywhere close enough to securing a seat in what was a bad election for Sinn Féin nationally. Her party is now more popular. 

While all three hopefuls are legitimate candidates,  their biggest  challenge is motivating Mountmellick's electorate to vote.

Another battleground in the electoral area centres in the Slieve Bloom communities centred on Clonaslee and Rosenallis.

Cllr Seamus McDonald is bidding to extend his near four decade run on  the Council.  He's probably been  the most understated, yet effective candidate when it comes to getting votes. The Fianna Fáil man came in third in 2019 and there's nothing to say he won't achieve a similar result  again.  His running mate in the area is Declan Good who contested respectably in 2019 but will have to impress a lot more voters to get into contention this time round.

Ms Holohan Garry will hope that work in the area since the last election will be of help and transfers from elsewhere will come  to her aid this time out.

Mountrath and surrounding areas represent another constituency within  a constituency in this sprawling Municipal district.

Cllr James Kelly was one of the big vote getters in 2019 and there is little sign of this changing five years on. The independent candidate has built a strong political base in Mountrath by being involved in many local groups. A bit like Mountmellick, the town has not attracted a great number of candidates to eat into his  support. He has also benefited from not being tied to a party. This has allowed him to work on getting votes across the municipal district especially south of Mountrath.

His closest serious competition could be Fintan Cuddy who is running for the first time. The Fianna Fáil man based in Castletown can look to GAA connections as a source of votes. This won't be enough to get elected.

Coolrain-based Kevin Drennan is an ex-Sinn Féin activist who is focusing on rural issues. A late arrival to the field, he is an outsider.

Cllr Conor Bergin of Fine Gael has made a point of highlighting issues in the Camross area and this could be help to the candidate who is based in Borris-in-Ossory   which puts him into the  contest for seats at the southern end of the electoral area.

Cllr Ollie Clooney emerged from the pack in 2019 to secure a seat in the Durrow area. He'll be relying on this vote again to back him but he will point to a record of hard work in five years to believe voters will back him again. It will be crucial for him to secure a big vote in his backyard to get back in.

As with 2019, many of the remaining candidates in the field are based in the southwestern corner of the county and it's sure to be a tight battle to see who emerges with a mandate.

Elections often favour incumbents and the seats in this area are occupied by Cllr John King and Cllr Conor Bergin both of Fine Gael.

Cllr King has made Rathdowney and Errill his areas of focus since he was first elected in 2009. He'll point to the creation of a town plan for Rathdowney and it being designated as a Towns First location  since the last poll as a key step forward for the community. However, he faces some formidable opponents at this election. 

Fianna Fáil's Brian Phelan is a member of the well-known Phelan family from Donaghmore. His father Brendan lost his seat at the last election when running as an independent. He previously had  a row with Fianna Fáil over candidate selection and left the party. Fianna Fáil ultimately  paid a heavy price for not keeping Phelan senior onside as it   failed to win a seat  south of the Slieve Blooms. The building of bridges between Fianna Fáil and the Phelans might be a sign of success but  winning back a lost  seat in Irish politics  is never easy.

The task will be made more difficult by Sinn Féin's ambitions in the district and its choice of candidate to win at least one of the six seats on offer.

Helen Campion has been active in Rathdowney on many fronts down the years and she will be hoping that this track record will show voters she can represent them at another level in County Hall.

 The remaining candidate in the field is Green Party candidate Fiona Dunne.  Her biggest problem is likely to be where she lives - Abbeyleix. The town was moved out of the district in Phil Hogan's reforms.