Newly elected Kilkenny councillor attends first council meeting with cherished item

Newly elected Labour Party councillor, Seán Ó hArgáin, marked a little piece of his own family history at his inaugural Kilkenny County Council meeting last Friday, as he used his late grandfather’s pocket watch for the day. 

Mr Ó hArgáin's grandfather, Seán McCarthy, finished his career as a member of Dublin County Council 72 years ago, representing Fine Gael in the Tallaght Electoral Area.

Fast forward to 2024 and the pocket watch, which is still working, holds great sentimental value for the city councillor whose grandfather sadly passed away only months after Mr Ó hArgáin, as his first grandson, was born in 1965.

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"I am lucky to have come from a very diverse political background on both sides of my family, which played a strong part in my upbringing and interest in politics," Cllr Ó hArgáin commented.

"On my mother’s side, the tradition was strongly Fine Gael and indeed my grandmother’s father was a Cumann na nGael councillor in County Clare in the 1920’s. My grandfather was elected to Dublin County Council on the same day as former Taoiseach, Liam Cosgrave, and they remained staunch friends until my Grandad’s passing. Mr. Cosgrave remembered him with great fondness when I met him on his last visit to Kilkenny in 2014," he added.

"I was proud to have had my Grandad’s watch with me today (Friday) and I hope that he would be proud to have another county councillor in the family. I would also hope that the work I will do over the next five years will do justice to my family’s support for me through over thirty years of political activity."

The new five year council term marks a significant milestone for the Labour Party's city representative, with Ó hArgain earning election to Kilkenny County Council for the first time after previously holding roles as a Borough councillor and Mayor of Kilkenny City.