Steady turnout as Longford voters cast ballot

Polling booths across county Longford opened at 7:00pm this morning. Polling booths for the European and Local Elections have seen a “steady trickle” of voters.

This morning voters in Newtownforbes polling booth have been turning up to cast their ballot since the opening of the polling station.

Invigilators say that although it has been quiet, there has been a steady stream of voters. In Clondra the turnout has been described as steady.

At the St Joseph's NS polling booth in Longford town the uptake of voters has been moderate. By 10am in one booth 5% of voters had cast their ballot. One voter was in at 7am to exercise their franchise.

Invigilators said that the first hour and a half turnout was steady, with sporadic bursts of voters. With five hours gone and 12 hours remaining it is difficult to predict a pattern of voting.

Thirty-nine candidates will contest 18 seats in three municipal districts - Longford (7), Granard (5) and Ballymahon (6). It is the first local election since 2019.

Voters have commented on the length of the ballot paper. The Midlands North West is a five seat constituency.

It's a packed field with a record 27 candidates on the ballot paper. Three Longford candidates will have their name and picture on the ballot sheet; Stephen Garland (Independent), Ciaran Mullooly (Independent Ireland) and James Reynolds (National Party).

Voting takes place in three electoral contests; the local elections, the European elections and the contest to elect a mayor for Limerick.

More than 3.7 million people are registered to vote in the local elections across the country, they will choose 949 councillors in 166 local electoral areas.

There are nearly 3.6 million people registered to vote in the European elections.