Councillor unhappy at long count in Mayo local elections

The new Cathaoirleach of the Ballina Municipal District has suggested that a Deputy Returning Officer be appointed in Mayo to speed up the election process.

Cllr Michael Loftus congratulated elected members at last week's annual general meeting of the municipal district but said he had a "small problem" with how the count was conducted.

Ballina was the last of 166 local electoral areas in Ireland to declare a first count. It came at around 2.30pm on Monday afternoon, June 10, after the counting process began at 9am on Saturday, June 8. A recount in Swinford and an intensive overnight count in Castlebar led to delays.

“We had a small problem with the count, it could have been done quicker,” said Cllr Loftus. “A Deputy Returning Officer should be appointed to go into the counts to make the process more efficient."

Director of Services for the Ballina Tom Gilligan said this may be something that has to be looked at in the future.