'We need to get down to brass tacks' - Sinn Féin's Matt Carthy on election results

Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy has spoken out on the performance of Sinn Féin in recent elections, saying that he was "not afraid" of a general election.

In the lead up to the local and European elections, Sinn Féin had spoken of massive gains in both, but as of yet the results have failed to appear.

"There have been some bright spots, such as in my old county of Monaghan, we strengthened our position as the largest party and we gained two seats and elected three brand new counselors," Carthy explained.

"In other places, clearly, we didn't have as good of a day. But we have more counselors than we had this time five years ago.

"Our job now is to try and ensure that they get to work straight away," Carthy said.

In the Midlands-North-West European elections, Sinn Féin is fighting for two seats, with MEP Chris MacManus seeking reelection, as well as newcomer Michelle Gildernew.

Speaking to reporters, Carthy, a former Sinn Féin MEP, said that Sinn Fein was “fighting” to keep a seat in the region.

“We need to get down to brass tacks and actually back to earning the trust of the people in advance of the general election.”

Asked if Sinn Féin were prepared for a general election following government rumours, Matt Carthy stated that he didn't know "why any political party would be afraid of the elections".

"At the end of the day, people get to decide and we're not afraid of an election whenever it happens. We're going to learn the lessons from this election really quickly and get down to brass tacks," Carthy said.

The first count is yet to be announced in the election count centre at the TF Royal Theatre count centre in Castlebar, Co Mayo. Based on rough estimates of the ballots, it appears that Independent TD Luke 'Ming' Flanagan has picked up the highest amount of first preference votes.