Growing unease in Sinn Féin over series of missteps by Mary Lou McDonald
Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil were neck-and-neck for first place in the local elections last night, as the dominance of the two main government parties in Friday’s elections was confirmed by counts all over the country on Monday.
Fine Gael was leading by a whisker on first-preference votes in the local elections but Fianna Fáil was marginally ahead on seat numbers, as a small number of counts continued on Monday night, with some recounts also due on Tuesday.
The fallout from the elections continued in Sinn Féin, with some party sources admitting that members are now questioning the leadership of Mary Lou McDonald.
Live coverage: Conor Pope and then Harry McGee will keep you up-to-date with every twist and turn in our live coverage of the Local and European results throughout Tuesday and in the counting in the Limerick mayoral election.
‘A taxi, compliments of Irish Rail. What service!’ A Christmas customer service miracle
The Big Irish Times Quiz of 2024
Nosferatu director Robert Eggers: ‘We needed to find a way to make the vampire scary again’
‘The Christmas swim is going to be a lot nicer’: Young Irish expats embrace their first Australian Christmas
Best reads from Local and European results
- As it happened: Monday’s live coverage of the counts
- Fintan O’Toole: Sinn Féin was the shock absorber of Irish politics. It’s worn out
- Analysis: Questions on McDonald’s leadership were off-limits - until now
- Miriam Lord: Micheál Martin is in the grip of post-victory delirium
- Europe: Von der Leyen’s chance of second term as president boosted by EPP performance
News in Ireland
- Ireland to spend €12 million refilling EU arm stockpiles
- Leaving Cert Irish paper one: ‘At first glance many would have felt disappointed’
- Analysis: What next in the Philip Nolan saga?
- Finglas murder inquiry: Suspect in fatal stabbing was recently released from prison
- Weather update: Today will be dry in most places with isolated showers drifting southeastwards across the country. A bright start with widespread spells of sunshine but patchy cloud will spread from the northwest through the day. Highest temperatures of 12 degrees in the north to 17 degrees in the south in light to moderate northwest winds. Tonight will be generally dry and clear, though cloud will thicken over the northern half of the country overnight. A few light showers are possible, especially in Ulster. Lowest temperatures of 3 to 6 degrees.
- Check out today’s Most Read stories
- Join The Irish Times WhatsApp channel for breaking news straight to your phone.
Sports
- Rhasidat Adeleke takes silver in 400m at European Championships: It was oh so close to being the absolute masterpiece of one-lap running required from Rhasidat Adeleke to claim a third European Championship gold medal for Ireland inside four days, but in the breathtaking end the Dublin sprinter had to settle for silver after a suitably thrilling 400 metres showdown inside the old Stadio Olimpico in Rome.
Parenting in My Shoes
- Sinéad Hussey: ‘We treat miscarriages as a blip or something that’s easily forgotten’: It was only when some of Sinéad Hussey’s friends started to have children that Sinéad felt she had “better get moving”. “I wasn’t one of those people who had a plan for how many kids I wanted,” says the midlands correspondent with RTÉ. “I just wanted kids.”
World
- Singapore Airlines offers compensation to passengers on severely turbulent flight: Singapore Airlines has sent offers of compensation to passengers on board a flight last month that encountered severe turbulence that led to dozens of injuries and one death, the carrier said on Tuesday.
Opinion
- Bobby McDonagh: The only thing the European far right hates more than the centre and the left is each other
- Derek Scally: Divisions of old West and East Germany are re-emerging
Business
- Thousands of rural tourism businesses ‘face closure’ over new short-term letting rules: New rules around short-term property lettings risk causing “untold damage” to rural Ireland by shutting down thousands of short-term tourism accommodation units, tourism chiefs have warned in a letter to Taoiseach Simon Harris.
Podcast Highlights
- In the News Podcast: From Israel’s jubilation to Gaza’s devastation - will Saturday’s hostage raid change the course of the war?
Why not try one of our Crosswords & Puzzles?
Like this?
Get the best content direct to your inbox by signing up to one of our newsletters