John Moran has thanked the people of Limerick for his success in becoming the county and Ireland’s first-ever directly elected mayor.
The Independent politician, a former secretary general in the Department of Finance, was elected on the 11th count, some 4,712 votes ahead of the next nearest candidate, Helen O’Donnell (Independent).
It was the first election of its kind in Ireland and will see Mayor Moran have powers in Limerick that have previously been held by local authority chief executives.
Local government shake-up
He told Newstalk the election was the biggest shake-up of local government in the history of the State.
“It was particularly pleasing to see votes coming from Abbeyfeale, Bruff, from all neighbourhoods across the city,” he said.
"That, for me, is what the future of this role is about; it’s about bringing places together, it’s not about politics that only speaks to a small group of people, a particular group of people in one area.
“I like to think we’ve done a brilliant job and I want to say fair play to Limerick.”
Limerick mayoral candidate John Moran listens to the first count being called. Image: PA Images / Alamy Stock PhotoThe new, so-called ‘Minister for Limerick,’ thinks the same system will be rolled out in other Irish cities within the next five years.
“This is the closest you’ll get in an Irish election to a job interview, and I think they took the time to understand the policies the candidates have, what the credentials were, and actually go through that," he said.
“They didn’t just vote on party lines, and you can see that happening with the number of votes that were moving around.
“That says a lot, not just for the future of Limerick, but the future of democracy.
“It didn’t just go through party lines, and you can see that happening with the number of votes.”
Fianna Fáil's Dee Ryan placed third in the race to become Limerick’s first directly elected mayor, with Fine Gael’s Daniel Butler in fourth.
