*Supporters lift Cllr Joe Cooney (FG) into the air. Photograph: Joe Buckley
HAVING TOPPED the poll in East Clare for the fourth election in a row, Cllr Joe Cooney (FG) stands out by a mile as Fine Gael’s best viable option of the newly elected Council to potentially stand for the party in a General Election.
Dubbed the “dyson of East Clare” on The Clare Echo’s political podcast, The Electoral Chair by communications consultant Mark Dunphy for his ability to hoover, Cllr Cooney once again delivered in spades when it came to cleaning up the vote of the Killaloe Municipal District with 27 percent of the entire first preference vote.
His return of 2,819 votes is up on the 2,697 he received in 2019 and the 2,790 of 2009 but it doesn’t eclipse his personal best of 2,843 in 2014.
Such a high return is likely to increase the pressure Cllr Cooney may come under from the party to allow his name forward for the next General Election. He has been approached in the past but given the party’s risk of ending up without a TD in Clare due to the ill-health of Joe Carey TD (FG), they may try power up the dyson for a tilt at the Dáil.
“We will take it one step at a time, we’re at a Council election here, we’ll get over this election first. As far as I’m concerned I’ve got a mandate to represent the people of the Killaloe MD for the next five years, that is what I will be focusing on at the moment,” Cooney responded when asked if another approach to him to run for the Dáil would be made.
Efforts over the last five years were recognised with his vote, he maintained. “The hard work has paid off. This hard work started five years ago when I got re-elected to the Council on the fourth attempt, I’ve worked hard for the people I’m representing no matter where the call is made from, I’ll always go and try do my best for the people, the hard work has paid off but a lot of time, commitment and travelling has gone into the hard work”.
O’Callaghans Mills native Joe said it was his work-rate and not hoovering ability that led to the outcome. “Shur look at as far as I’m concerned I’m elected again to represent the people of the Killaloe MD, I cover every corner as much as possible and in fairness to the other elected councillors in the Killaloe MD they do their job as well, I get a lot of calls and I know the area, I wouldn’t say the hoover of East Clare, it is the work I’m doing for the people, I will be there to continue working for the people for the next five years”.
To get such a large backing from the public is rewarding, the current Mayor of Clare admitted. “It is very satisfying and in fairness to the public out there they are well aware of what I and other councillors are doing for the Killaloe MD, an awful lot has been achieved for the Killaloe MD over the last ten to twenty years, all we can do is keep progressing our area, make the area a better place to work, to live and to enjoy, that is always very important and it has always been my motto. We’ve a lot achieved but I must say a lot more needs to be achieved going forward”.
For the next Council term, he will once again be joined by the familiar faces of Cllr Pat Hayes (FF), Cllr Alan O’Callaghan (FF), Cllr Tony O’Brien (FF) and Cllr Pat Burke (FG) in the Killaloe MD. “We’d all love to see the same team continue on, my belief is the way the team has worked over the last five years we’ve worked as a team, we all work to represent the people”.
Fine Gael increasing their representation by one on the Council is a plus for the party, the former Chairman of Clare GAA maintained. “Locally we have eight seats and we’re hoping to improve on that and maybe get an extra seat or two but whatever the outcome is the votes are cast and we will have to see what the outcome is over today and tomorrow, hopefully it will be a good outcome, I’d like to compliment everyone who put their name forward for election, for the whole county especially the whole Killaloe MD area, we’re there to work for the people, that is what I will continue to do and I’m sure everyone elected will be doing something similar”.
