Dublin Central General Election 2024 updates: 'You have given us a ...

Seats filled: 1

10pm: Mr Donohoe, Fine Gael Minister for Public Expenditure, said the main theme of the election is "one of the centre holding", describing Sinn Féin as "the weakest opposition party in Europe".

He told reporters at the RDS in Dublin: "I think we're on the verge of a very, very positive election for the party and a very, very strong electoral performance."

On the potential election of Gerard Hutch in his constituency, he said: "I think it's worth noting that the vast majority of people in Dublin Central have not voted for him, and the vast majority of voters in Dublin Central have chosen to put their votes behind other candidates and we will have to reflect in due course regarding why he performed like he did, but the big picture today is one of the centre holding, that's the big picture.

"The big picture is, at a time in which incumbent governments all over Europe are struggling to get re-elected, the two larger parties within this government, in particular Fine Gael, are going to deliver a very strong performance."

Referring to Sinn Fein he added: "It's now very evident that they're the weakest opposition party in Europe."

9.30pm: Clare Daly has been eliminated in Dublin Central after the fourth count.

Mary Lou McDonald has already been re-elected.

Gerrry 'The Monk' Hutch is now looking very likely to take the fourth seat, after Paschal Donohoe and Gary Gannon.

Fine Gael's Paschal Donohoe and Gary Gannon of the Social Democrats also look secure to win seats

8.30pm

Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald has been elected on the third count in Dublin Central.

There were loud cheers from supporters as her election was announced.

7.47pm

After two counts in Dublin Central Mary Lou McDonald is nearly across the line for the first seat. She needs 41 more votes, and seeing how her running mate Janice Boylan has been eliminated she will benefit from her

transfers.

Also eliminated now are Andrew Kelly (Centre Party Ireland), and Ian Noel Smyth (Aontu)

7.30pm:

After Count 2, Mary Lou McDonald's running mate Janice Boylan has been eliminated. Full results after the second count, with no one yet elected:

McDonald, Mary Lou (SF) 6,510

Donohoe, Paschal (FG) 5,569

Gannon, Gary (soc Dems) 4,397

Hutch, Gerard (Ind) 3,187

Sherlock, Marie (LAB) 2,505

Fitzpatrick, Mary (FF) 2,427

Hourigan, Neasa (Green) 1,986

Steenson, Malachy (IND) 1,955

O’Ceannabhain, Eoghan (PBP/SOL) 1,497

Daly, Clare (Ind 4 Change) 1,367

Boylan, Janice (SF) 1,295

Eliminated this round: Janice Boylan (SF)

6.30pm

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has topped the first count votes in Dublin Central but no candidate has yet been elected in the constituency as no one has yet reached the quota.

Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch is currently in fourth place, after Paschal Donohoe and Gary Gannon.

Things are not looking good for sitting Green TD Neasa Hourigan in the four seater, polling 1952 first preference votes.

Full results:

Mary Lou McDonald 6389

Paschal Donohoe FG 5493

Gary Gannon - Soc Dems - 4353

Gerard Hutch - Independent - 3098

Marie Sherlock Lab 2465

Mary Fitzpatrick FF 2344

Neasa Hourigan Green 1952

Malachy Steenson - Non party - 1602

Eoin O Ceannabhain PBP 1471

Clare Daly Indepdents for Change 1317

Janice Boylan SF 1257

Eliminated

Ian Noel Smyth Aontu 715

Andrew Kelly Centre Party 298

The second count has now commenced, with the eliminated candidates' votes being redistributed according to preferences.

5.30pm

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said her party had delivered an “incredible performance” in the general election.

She made clear she wanted to engage with other parties about the “possibilities of government”.

Ms McDonald arrived at the count centre in the RDS in a very positive mood ahead of the first official Dublin counts.

The first thing I want to say is to acknowledge every single person right across the state who came out to vote for Sinn Féin,” she told reporters in the RDS count centre in Dublin this evening.

“You have given us again a powerful and a strong mandate, and we understand the trust that you have placed in us to make life better for you, and we are determined to do just that. This has been really an incredible performance by all of our candidates, by Sinn Féin across the state.

“Over a short number of weeks we have achieved a result that many people a few weeks ago would have thought impossible. So thank you. Thank you to every single person who voted for us.

“I said in the course of the campaign that I believe another five years of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil is bad news for our society, for our communities, for families who are struggling, for our housing crisis, which is deepening, and nobody should miss the record homeless numbers that we saw on election day itself.

“We’re now at a really important decision point for Irish society and politics, and we need change.

“We intend when the votes are counted and when we know the lie of the land, we will be talking to people about the possibilities of government.

“I do not want to see another five years of the kind of chaos, the kind of disregard that we have seen under Fine Gael and Fianna Fail. I think that is a bad outcome for our society.”

Speaking to Newstalk later, Ms MacDonald was asked if she had a message for Gerry “The Monk” Hutch: “Not particularly,” she said.

"This is a democratic system; the people make the call. If he is a representative of the people to the Dáil he will have the same rights and responsibilities as the rest of us.

“I look forward to and hope to be working with other colleagues on the left in the Dáil”, she added.

5.07pm

Independent 4 Change candidate Clare Daly, who polled poorly in Dublin Central, said the fact that Gerry Hutch did well was an anti-establishment vote that could bring a needed focus on the area.

“It’s incredibly interesting. It’s not a place I would have wanted to be obviously but I think we’ve seen the massive galvanising of that anti-establishment vote around the candidacy of Gerard Hutch,” she said.

“I think all progressive Independents across Dublin probably suffered a little bit in favour of the parties as well, so it left me where I am.”

“There’s huge goodwill out there and all the rest but I’m not going to get to see the benefit of all of the massive transfers that we got, but that’s life and I think it has put the world’s attention and the country’s attention on a constituency that has been so badly neglected, and for me that’s a really good thing.”

“I hope that attention can be maintained and the people in this wonderful area can get the attention that they so badly deserve and haven’t got,” she added.

Asked if she welcomes the fact that Hutch appears to have the level of support he has, Ms Daly said the fact that he is there in the constituency will focus attention on it.

“The challenge will be to him to build on that. I do believe the constituency needs that. I don’t see him being a national parliamentarian or a legislator per se, which is part of the job, but if elected he could, if the will was there, really keep a focus on an area that has been left behind and is crying out,” she said.

“There are so many people in that community trying their best. It is an incredibly diverse constituency with a lot of division within it.”

“Let’s see what happens. Either way the constituency has spoken and by voting for Gerard Hutch in such numbers they’ve sent that signal anyway, and the political establishment should take note,” she added.

1.57pm

Social Democrats candidate Gary Gannon has said he is humbled by the vote in Dublin Central.

“I'm humbled and also determined to vindicate that over the course of the next five years. We've done a massive amount of work in Dublin Central. In terms of the work that we are doing on the ground, the strength of conviction we have bringing through issues in the Dail that was really starting to come back for us, and we were picking up a lot of momentum in Dublin Central. And I think today you'll see the results of that,” he said.

Asked about the effect that Gerry Hutch had being on the ballot paper, Gannon said it was something that “none of us expected”.

“He came in and he got a lot of media with this announcement, and that's going to be expected. But I think, for me, it's not just about what happens and who takes the fourth seat. I think it's a reflection of the fact that there's a lot of hurt, there's a huge amount of pain. I mean, that period of austerity in 2011 to 2016 destroyed the fabric of communities, and you're still seeing the tentacles of that now,” he added.

“I appreciate what the headlines will be today and tomorrow, but I do encourage everybody to go beyond them and look deeper. Because when people are hurting to the extent that they are in, some of the communities that I represent the length and breadth of Ireland, and you're going to see outcries of that, and it'll manifest in different ways. And I think we're seeing one manifestation of that today,” he said.

Asked if he thought the Hutch vote was a protest vote he said he didn’t think so.

Soc Dems leader Holly Cairns gave birth to her first baby yesterday as the nation went to the polls, and Gary Gannon was delighted for her.

“For me, I just want to say how in awe I am of Holly Cairns. She's not only our leader, she's my friend. She is somebody that has took the reins of this party two exceptional TDs in Catherine Murphy and Roisin Shortall, and she's really brought us on,” he explained.

Regarding future plans and possible negotiations for government, he said the next step is to see exactly what's in the boxes.

1.30pm

Independent candidate Malachy Steenson has said it looks like Mary Lou McDonald will take the first seat in Dublin Central, followed by Paschal Donohoe, and Gary Gannon for the Social Democrats will take the third seat. The battle for fourth seat could be between Gerry Hutch (Ind), Marie Sherlock (Lab) and Mary Fitzpatrick (FF) in his opinion.

He thinks Sherlock may take it on likely transfers.

The Monk is in the mix as Malachy Steenson gives his view on the tallies from Dublin Central

“It’s a disappointing day for the Nationalist movement but it shows what acres of media coverage can do for a celebrity candidate,” he said in reference to Gerry Hutch’s entry.

“The media have to look at the role they have played in this election in excluding people they didn’t agree with. Sadly, the people will pay the price,” he told the Irish Independent.

12pm

With practically all the boxes tallied in Dublin Central the news of the day is how well convicted criminal Gerry Hutch has polled.

From the outset he was doing well on tally sheets from his own inner city areas like North Strand, and there was an expectation among some of the tally crews that this would change as more boxes were opened.

But his vote was strong across the city, and when it comes to the first count he looks destined to come fourth.

Transfers in later counts will erode this, but the fact that he has featured so strongly has surprised many.

Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald will top the poll on around 20pc it appears, followed by Fine Gael’s Paschal Donohoe on around 17pc.

Gary Gannon of the Social Democrats is polling in third place at 13pc followed by Hutch on 9pc.

The fact that Hutch entered the race in the first place will have hurt the ambitions of right wing candidate Malachy Steenson, and Independent 4 Change Clare Daly, who are in ar around the 5pc mark.

The Green Party’s Neasa Hourigan’s ambitions to retain her seat appeare to have taken a bruising, with the tallies indicating 6pc of the vote.

Transfers will play around with the placings a lot, but this constituency is one to watch today.