Over 30,000 local voters ready to have their say

Over 12,500 voters will go to the polls in Athlone this Friday to select nine people to sit on Athlone Town Council over the next five years. Some 12,637 people are registered to vote in the Athlone Town Council election this Friday, when they will select nine people from the 17 candidates hoping to serve on Athlone Town Council. This figure includes 496 voters who were added on the supplementary register. Fianna Fáil currently holds four seats, but will be under pressure to retain its representation in the midst of a national decline in its popularity. In the Athlone Area of Westmeath County Council 19,332 people are registered to vote, which includes 700 who were added on the supplementary register. They will go to the polls on Friday to select six people from the eleven candidates hoping to secure a seat. In South Roscommon 10,805 people can go to the polls, 189 of whom were added on the supplementary register. They will be asked to elect six councillors from the ten candidates contesting the election, six of whom are currently sitting councillors. All three elections will be tightly contested, with 17 candidates, eight of whom are sitting councillors, hoping to secure one of the nine seats on Athlone Town Council. There are eleven candidates for the Athlone area of Westmeath County Council contesting six seats. In Athlone, with the nationwide swing against Fianna Fáil it is possible that Fine Gael could gain a seat at their expense this time out, which would see two of the Fianna Fáil candidates losing out. Fianna Fáil is fielding its four sitting councillors Kieran Molloy, John Butler, Egbert Moran, Kevin "Boxer" Moran and Aengus O"Rourke. Fine Gael is fielding four candidates (Cllrs Mark Cooney and Mick O"Connell and new candidates Alan Shaw and Gabrielle McFadden). And while Labour party leader Eamon Gilmore said last week he was confident the party could make a gain on the Town Council and claim two seats with the party fielding Cllr Ray Lennon and Jim Henson, it remains to be seen if the swing against Government is enough to see the party double its representation on the council. Sinn Féin"s Paul Hogan is likely to be re-elected with a steady Sinn Féin vote in the town and based on his reputation over the last few years. If Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael each secure three seats and Labour and Sinn Féin take a seat each, this will leave one seat up for grabs. There are five independent candidates - Sheila Buckley Byrne, Marie Reddin, Donie Kenny, Benny Cooney and Mick Meade - to battle it out for. Both Sheila Buckley Byrne and Benny Cooney have previously contested elections, Cooney as an independent and Buckley Byrne for the Fianna Fáil party. Five years ago Buckley Byrne polled extremely well and all indications are that she could well take a seat this time round. However, the second Labour candidate, the fourth Fianna Fáiler and maybe the fourth Fine Gaeler will also be in contention for the last seat. In the Athlone Area of Westmeath County Council the eleven candidates will be battling it out for six seats, which will mean at least one of the sitting councillors will lose out. There are currently seven councillors in the area - Kevin "Boxer" Moran, Kieran Molloy, Frankie Keena and Tom Allen from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael"s Mark Cooney, John Dolan and Joe Whelan. With some of the electoral area lost and only six seats this time out at least one of the sitting councillors will lose their seat. But with the likes of Paul Hogan rumoured to be doing well on the doorsteps and with Labour running Lisa Burke as well as a fourth Fine Gael candidate, Gabrielle McFadden, and independent candidate Jack Moran, we could see a complete shake-up in the Athlone Area of Westmeath County Council by this time next week. In South Roscommon, there are six sitting councillors, although only five were elected to South Roscommon the last time with Fianna Fáil"s Paddy Kilduff elected to Mid Roscommon last time out. His area has now been incorporated into South Roscommon, which has received an additional seat in the realignment of the constituency boundaries. Fine Gael will be hoping to make a gain at the expense of Fianna Fáil, with the party fielding three candidates in the area - sitting councillors Ollie Moore and John Naughten and first time candidate Dermot Kelly. Fianna Fáil may run into some difficulty in that its candidates are not geographically well-spread. Sitting councillors Anthony Geraghty and Paddy Kilduff will both be drawing from the same home base, as they are located side by side. The party is also fielding sitting councillor Trevor Finneran and new candidate John Keogh in the area. Sinn Féin is running a candidate for the first time ever in the area, Alma Keogh, who will be hoping her party, the fact that she is the only female candidate and the fact that she is based in Bealnamulla, will see her secure a seat. Two independent candidates - Cllr Tony Ward and Jimmy Kenny, who is a former member of Fianna Fáil are also contesting the election. Cllr Ward has built up a strong base over the last five years and Jimmy Kenny will be hopeful that his move away from Fianna Fáil will see him over the line.