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06 Sept 2025
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06 Sept 2025
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Voters in North Tipperary are going to the polls on Friday
A transformed new three seater North Tipperary constituency, stretching from Roscrea and Castlecomer in North West Kilkenny to Newport and Ballina on the borders of Limerick and East Clare, is a hard fought battleground for the 2024 General Election where one new face is guaranteed as two candidates are fighting to keep their seats.
The 14 candidates are Evan Barry (Sinn Féin); Dr. Phyll Bugler (Fine Gael); Dan Harty (Sinn Féin); Alan Kelly (Labour sitting TD), Michael Lowry (Independent / Lowry Team sitting TD), Peter Madden (Independent / National Alliance); Liam Minehan (Independent); Diana O’Dwyer (People Before Profit); Ryan O’Meara (Fianna Fáil); Francis O’Toole (Aontú); Justin ‘Roundy’ Phelan (Independent); Iva Pocock (Green Party); Jim Ryan (Independent) and Michael Smith (Fianna Fáil).
Following recommendations from the Electoral Commission, Tipperary is once again divided into North and South constituencies and in the North a large section of north west Kilkenny is included, encompassing Urlingford, Galmoy, Freshford and Tullaroan.
In the west of County Tipperary areas around Newport and Birdhill are returning to Tipperary North and may create some interesting anomalies where sitting candidates face an uphill battle to appeal to new voters while also losing the votes of previously loyal constituents now unable to vote for them.
Outgoing Deputies Alan Kelly and Michael Lowry are both anticipated to do well and conducted strong and confident campaigns across the large constituency, while young and dynamic new faces snapping at their heels have made arguments which have resonated with the voting public in the rural, yet progressive and forward looking constituency.
One of the early surprises in the constituency was Fianna Fáil's decision to run two candidates in the three seater, with Cllr. Ryan O’Meara and Councillor Michael Smith, son of the former Minister of Defence, asking voters to support their party down the ticket and give their colleague their next preference.
If splitting the vote could backfire and perhaps create a valuable window for Fine Gael’s Councillor in the Nenagh Municipal District, Dr. Phyll Bugler to take a seat is a possibility observers will be watching unfold in the count centre in Thurles this weekend.
In the 2020 general election Labour's Alan Kelly topped the poll in the Nenagh and Shannonside communities near Ballina and his hometown of Portroe, while Thurles based Independent polltopper, Michael Lowry, easily took first place after strongly performing in the southern portion of the constituency as far as Roscrea.
Rural issues such as farming and planning permissions loom large in the mind of voters in North Tipperary, where land and its usage for agriculture and housing dominate the list of topics met by candidates on the doorsteps during the pre-election campaign period.
Immigration, healthcare and the ongoing crisis at University Hospital Limerick, as well as extracting water from the river Shannon, support for families struggling with inadequate support for autism, childcare and recreation amenities for teenagers are some of the other issues voiced by voters at local debates.
Counting the votes for the constituency will begin at the Presentation Secondary School in Thurles at 9am on Saturday morning and is anticipated to continue into Sunday as the three seats for North Tipperary and three for the south constituency are filled this weekend.
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