Race for final seat in Offaly is "very, very tight" - Clendennen

Fine Gael's Cllr John Clendennen has conceded that the third and final seat in the Offaly constituency will either be “a Fine Gael or a Sinn Fein seat” and described his battle to regain the party seat lost by Marcella Corcoran Kennedy in 2020 as “very, very tight.”

He said “every preference will count” and added that the counting of votes in Birr is “not over by a long shot.”

Having put in “a huge effort” on a number of fronts, including online and knocking on doors since he was selected as the sole Fine Gael candidate in Offaly last August, Cllr Clendennen said he felt there was “a focus on stability” among the electorate over the past week or 10 days,. “There is a element of instability globally, and the feeling was that we needed to keep things stable here in Ireland” he said.

He added his own focus at the moment is securing a seat for Fine Gael in Offaly and ensuring that the party secures seats for its other candidates across the country.