Photo: Sarah777 at English Wikipedia · Public domainOnly 7 candidates stood for Carrick-on-Suir’s 5 seats at the 2024 local elections
One council serves Fethard: Tipperary County Council. Ireland has no town or district councils. The Carrick-on-Suir local electoral area elected 5 councillors in June 2024: Fianna Fáil 2, Sinn Féin 1, Labour Party 1 and Fine Gael 1. No party holds a majority on Tipperary County; Independent has the most seats, 14 of 40, short of the 21 a majority needs. In the Dáil, Tipperary South has 3 members: Independent 2 and Fine Gael 1.
Fethard’s council and votes, in 4 figures
A short ballot
7 candidates stood for 5 seats in Carrick-on-Suir in June 2024, the 3rd-least contested ballot of 166 by candidates per seat. Local elections ↓
A large budget for its size
Tipperary County Council’s 2026 revenue budget comes to €1,626 for each resident, against €1,551 across all 31 councils, leaving out the HAP programme. Council money ↓
No majority on Tipperary County
Independent won the most seats on Tipperary County Council in June 2024, 14 of 40, short of the 21 a majority needs; it ran 21 candidates. No party holds a majority on any of the 31 councils, so each council’s business is carried by votes across parties. Who’s in charge ↓
High turnout
9,104 of Carrick-on-Suir’s 16,763 registered voters turned out in June 2024, 54%: the 51st-highest of 166 local electoral areas (all of them: 49%). How Fethard voted ↓
Written from the data on this page: the 2024 count sheets of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the Oireachtas members list.
No party holds a majority on Tipperary County Council
Seats on Tipperary County Council as elected in June 2024, with each party’s candidates, and the other councils beside it.
- Independent1421 stood
- Fianna Fáil1013 stood
- Fine Gael1012 stood
- Labour Party34 stood
- Sinn Féin211 stood
- Workers and Unemployed Action12 stood
As elected on 7 June 2024.
A party needs 21 of the 40 seats to outvote the rest. None has that: Independent is largest with 14. None of the 31 councils has a single-party majority. Fianna Fáil is second with 10 seats. The councillors elect a cathaoirleach each June to chair the council for a year; no open national list names them.
The 31 councils of Ireland
Seats by party as elected, largest party named; this council first.
Local and general election results 2024: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (CC BY-SA 4.0); areas matched to towns by TownRatings from Tailte Éireann boundaries and CSO Census 2022 Small Areas (CC BY 4.0).
One council, and the government for the rest
Fethard has no town or county council of its own: Ireland has 31 councils, each the only council for its area.
Housing and homelessness, planning, local and regional roads, parks and libraries, the fire service, bins enforcement and street cleaning, the register of electors, and the Local Property Tax rate it may vary.
tipperarycoco.ie ↗Schools (Department of Education), health (the HSE), national roads (TII), policing (An Garda Síochána) and the Local Property Tax itself (Revenue).
gov.ie ↗Uisce Éireann runs water and sewers; private operators collect most bins under the council’s rules.
Who to ask
Green: the council. Gold: a government department or one of its agencies. Grey: another public body.
From the council to the Dáil
Every elected tier that speaks for Fethard, from the most recent elections.
- 1The Carrick-on-Suir local electoral areaCarrick-on-Suir · 5 membersImelda GoldsboroDavid DunneMichael 'Chicken' BrennanMark FitzgeraldKieran Bourke
- 2Tipperary County Council40 councillors from 8 local electoral areasIndependent 14 · Fianna Fáil 10 · Fine Gael 10 · Labour Party 3 · Sinn Féin 2 · Workers and Unemployed Action 1
- 3Dáil ÉireannTipperary South · 3 members
Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. TDs: Houses of the Oireachtas Open Data (Oireachtas PSI Licence, CC BY 4.0).
5 councillors represent Carrick-on-Suir
Each of the local electoral areas where 5% or more of the town’s residents live: who was elected, and who else stood.
- Imelda Goldsboro
- David Dunne
- Michael 'Chicken' Brennan
- Mark Fitzgerald
- Kieran Bourke
Also stood (2): Kevin O'Meara (Independent), Martin Murphy (Irish Freedom Party).
Fethard’s councillors, one by one
| Councillor | Party | Area | First preferences | Result | Returning or new |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imelda Goldsboro | Fianna Fáil | Carrick-on-Suir | 1,898 | Elected at count 1, on the quota | Re-elected |
| David Dunne | Sinn Féin | Carrick-on-Suir | 1,659 | Elected at count 1, on the quota | Re-elected |
| Michael 'Chicken' Brennan | Labour Party | Carrick-on-Suir | 1,486 | Elected at count 2, on the quota | New |
| Mark Fitzgerald | Fine Gael | Carrick-on-Suir | 1,339 | Elected at count 5, on the quota | Re-elected |
| Kieran Bourke | Fianna Fáil | Carrick-on-Suir | 1,334 | Elected at count 4, on the quota | Re-elected |
4 of the 5 were sitting councillors who were re-elected; 1 weren’t on the council before the election.
Seats by party in each of Tipperary County Council’s 8 local electoral areas
Every area of Tipperary County Council: seats, candidates and turnout
| Area | Seats | Candidates | Electorate | Turnout | Quota |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carrick-on-Suir | 5 | 7 | 16,763 | 54.3% | 1,508 |
| Cahir | 4 | 10 | 12,428 | 58.2% | 1,437 |
| Cashel-Tipperary | 7 | 13 | 23,832 | 52.8% | 1,560 |
| Clonmel | 6 | 11 | 19,734 | 49.9% | 1,390 |
| Nenagh | 5 | 8 | 18,622 | 56.5% | 1,742 |
| Newport | 4 | 7 | 14,247 | 57.3% | 1,623 |
| Roscrea-Templemore | 4 | 8 | 15,059 | 56% | 1,668 |
| Thurles | 5 | 6 | 16,791 | 56% | 1,553 |
Each of the local electoral areas elects 3 to 7 councillors by single transferable vote: voters number the candidates in order, a candidate who reaches the quota is elected, and spare votes and those of the lowest candidate pass to the next preference. A councillor who leaves is replaced by co-option, usually from the same party, so the names can change without an election.
Councillors: same source as Who’s in charge, above.
Women hold 12 of the 40 seats on Tipperary County Council
Everyone elected to Tipperary County Council across its 8 local electoral areas in June 2024, by party: how many are women and how many sat on the council before.
| Party | Seats | Women | Re-elected | First preferences |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | 14 | 2 | 11 | 36.4% |
| Fianna Fáil | 10 | 3 | 8 | 22% |
| Fine Gael | 10 | 4 | 9 | 20.3% |
| Labour Party | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6.9% |
| Sinn Féin | 2 | 1 | 2 | 9.1% |
| Workers and Unemployed Action | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2.5% |
12 of the 40 councillors are women, 30%; across all 31 councils the share is 26%. 32 sat on the council before the election and 8 are new to it.
Every member of Tipperary County Council
| Councillor | Party | Area | Returning or new |
|---|---|---|---|
| Máirín McGrath | Independent | Cahir | Re-elected |
| Andy Moloney | Independent | Cahir | Re-elected |
| Marie Murphy | Fine Gael | Cahir | Re-elected |
| Micheál Anglim | Fianna Fáil | Cahir | Re-elected |
| Imelda Goldsboro | Fianna Fáil | Carrick-on-Suir | Re-elected |
| David Dunne | Sinn Féin | Carrick-on-Suir | Re-elected |
| Michael 'Chicken' Brennan | Labour Party | Carrick-on-Suir | New |
| Mark Fitzgerald | Fine Gael | Carrick-on-Suir | Re-elected |
| Kieran Bourke | Fianna Fáil | Carrick-on-Suir | Re-elected |
| John O'Heney | Independent | Cashel-Tipperary | New |
| Declan Burgess | Fine Gael | Cashel-Tipperary | Re-elected |
| Liam Browne | Independent | Cashel-Tipperary | New |
| Roger Kennedy | Fianna Fáil | Cashel-Tipperary | Re-elected |
| Mary Hanna Hourigan | Fine Gael | Cashel-Tipperary | Re-elected |
| John Crosse | Fine Gael | Cashel-Tipperary | Re-elected |
| Annemarie Ryan Shiner | Sinn Féin | Cashel-Tipperary | Re-elected |
| Michael Murphy | Fine Gael | Clonmel | Re-elected |
| Pat English | Workers and Unemployed Action | Clonmel | Re-elected |
| Siobhán Ambrose | Fianna Fáil | Clonmel | Re-elected |
| John Fitzgerald | Fine Gael | Clonmel | Re-elected |
| Richie Molloy | Independent | Clonmel | Re-elected |
| Niall P Dennehy | Independent | Clonmel | Re-elected |
| Joe Hannigan | Independent | Nenagh | Re-elected |
| Michael O'Meara | Independent | Nenagh | Re-elected |
| Ryan O'Meara | Fianna Fáil | Nenagh | New |
| Séamus Morris | Independent | Nenagh | Re-elected |
| Louise Morgan Walsh | Labour Party | Nenagh | New |
| Fiona Bonfield | Labour Party | Newport | Re-elected |
| Pamela Quirke O'Meara | Independent | Newport | New |
| Dr Phyll Bugler | Fine Gael | Newport | Re-elected |
| John Carroll | Fianna Fáil | Newport | Re-elected |
| Michael Smith | Fianna Fáil | Roscrea-Templemore | Re-elected |
| Shane Lee | Independent | Roscrea-Templemore | Re-elected |
| Eddie Moran | Independent | Roscrea-Templemore | Re-elected |
| William Kennedy | Fine Gael | Roscrea-Templemore | New |
| Jim Ryan | Independent | Thurles | Re-elected |
| Micheál Lowry | Independent | Thurles | Re-elected |
| Sean Ryan | Fianna Fáil | Thurles | Re-elected |
| Kay Cahill Skehan | Fianna Fáil | Thurles | New |
| Peggy Ryan | Fine Gael | Thurles | Re-elected |
The council: same source as Who’s in charge, above.
First preferences in Carrick-on-Suir, June 2024
Each candidate’s first-preference votes; the tick is the quota of 1,508. Elected candidates are in bold.
Each party’s share of first preferences in Carrick-on-Suir
The tick is the party’s share across all of Ireland.
9,104 of 16,763 registered voters turned out, 54.3%: the 51st-highest of 166 local electoral areas (all of them: 49.4%). With 9,047 valid votes and 5 seats the quota was 1,508; the count ran to 5 rounds. Imelda Goldsboro (Fianna Fáil) and David Dunne (Sinn Féin) passed the quota on first preferences; transfers filled the other 3.
Every candidate, count by count (5 counts)
| Candidate | Party | First preferences | Result | Votes at the end |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Fitzgerald | Fine Gael | 1,339 | Elected at count 5, on the quota | 1,545 |
| Kieran Bourke | Fianna Fáil | 1,334 | Elected at count 4, on the quota | 1,518 |
| Michael 'Chicken' Brennan | Labour Party | 1,486 | Elected at count 2, on the quota | 1,508 |
| Imelda Goldsboro | Fianna Fáil | 1,898 | Elected at count 1, on the quota | 1,508 |
| David Dunne | Sinn Féin | 1,659 | Elected at count 1, on the quota | 1,508 |
| Martin Murphy | Irish Freedom Party | 299 | Excluded at count 5 | – |
| Kevin O'Meara | Independent | 1,032 | Not elected, standing at the last count | 1,319 |
How Fethard voted: same source as Who’s in charge, above.
Who stood, and who was elected, June 2024
Every candidate for Tipperary County Council, by party: the light bar is candidates, the solid bar those elected.
Share of candidates elected, all of Ireland
Parties with 10 or more candidates across the 31 councils.
70 candidates stood for 40 seats on Tipperary County Council in June 2024, 1.8 for each seat. Turnout across the council was 54.8%, the 9th-highest of 31 councils. Independent elected 14 of its 21 candidates. 22 of the 70 candidates were women (31%; 31% across the country), and 21 stood without a party. Across all 31 councils, 2,172 candidates stood for 949 seats, 2.3 for each.
Turnout in all 31 councils
Local elections: same source as Who’s in charge, above.
Fethard is in Tipperary South
3 TDs elected to the Dáil by single transferable vote on 29 November 2024, the whole constituency’s count.
Independent
oireachtas.ie ↗Fine Gael
oireachtas.ie ↗Independent
oireachtas.ie ↗TDs as the Oireachtas lists them today, with any office they hold; a by-election or a change of party shows here, the 2024 count below does not change.
First preferences in Tipperary South, November 2024
First-preference share by party in Tipperary South
Turnout was 60.6%, 41,363 of 68,247 registered voters: the 17th-highest of 43 Dáil constituencies (all of them: 59.7%). The quota was 10,270: 41,079 valid votes for 3 seats, counted over 6 rounds. Nobody reached the quota on first preferences, so every seat was filled on transfers. Seamus Healy (Independent), 5th on first preferences, won a seat on transfers, overtaking Imelda Golsboro (Fianna Fáil), who was 3rd. Seamus Healy (Independent) took the last seat with 9,601 votes at the final count, 1,753 more than Imelda Golsboro (Fianna Fáil), on 7,848.
Every candidate, count by count (6 counts)
| Candidate | Party | First preferences | Result | Votes at the end |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seamus Healy | Independent | 4,795 | Elected at the last count, below the quota | 9,601 |
| Michael Murphy | Fine Gael | 8,371 | Elected at count 6, on the quota | 10,415 |
| Mattie McGrath | Independent | 10,014 | Elected at count 2, on the quota | 10,270 |
| Myriam Madigan | Green Party | 584 | Excluded at count 2 | – |
| Rosemary McGlone | Aontú | 486 | Excluded at count 2 | – |
| John McGrath | The National Party | 316 | Excluded at count 2 | – |
| Nadaline Webster | Independent Ireland | 161 | Excluded at count 2 | – |
| Bill Fitzgerald | Independent | 154 | Excluded at count 2 | – |
| Michael Chicken Brennan | Labour Party | 1,731 | Excluded at count 3 | – |
| John O'Heney | Independent | 3,692 | Excluded at count 4 | – |
| Martin Browne | Sinn Féin | 4,937 | Excluded at count 6 | – |
| Imelda Golsboro | Fianna Fáil | 5,838 | Not elected, standing at the last count | 7,848 |
Dáil Éireann: same source as Who’s in charge, above.
Tipperary County Council plans to spend €1,626 per resident in 2026
What its 2026 revenue budget pays for, service by service, and where the money comes from.
By service, per resident, 2026
What pays for it, 2026
Shares of what funds the 2026 budget; the tick is all 31 councils together.
Leaving out the HAP programme, that is the 5th-highest of the 31 councils per resident; across all of them it is €1,551. The budget is up 10% on 2025, when it was €248.8M.
Commercial rates on businesses pay for 15% of the budget. Its annual rate on valuation is 0.2232, the 5th-highest of the 31 councils that rate on revalued property. The Local Property Tax brings in another 11%.
Budget per resident, all 31 councils (without the HAP programme)
Show the services as a table, 2025 and 2026
| Service | 2026 | Per resident | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Housing and building | €65.7M | €392 | €54.8M | 20% |
| Roads and transport | €64.2M | €383 | €61.2M | 5% |
| Water services | €12.2M | €73 | €13.7M | -11% |
| Planning and development | €25.8M | €154 | €25M | 3% |
| Environment and fire | €68.2M | €406 | €58.5M | 17% |
| Libraries, parks and amenities | €17.8M | €106 | €16.9M | 5% |
| Agriculture, education, health and welfare | €1.2M | €7 | €1.1M | 5% |
| Other services | €19M | €113 | €17.6M | 8% |
Budgets: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Local Authority Annual Budgets 2025 and 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), revenue account before inter-authority contributions are netted; residents: CSO Census 2022 (CC BY 4.0).
Each of Tipperary County Council’s 40 councillors speaks for about 4,200 residents
Residents per councillor on each of the 31 councils.
Tipperary County Council has 40 councillors for 167,895 residents: about 4,200 each, the 8th-lowest of 31 councils. The range runs from 9,410 residents per councillor on Dublin City to 1,960 on Leitrim County.
Residents per councillor, all 31 councils
Seats: local elections 2024 (Department of Housing, CC BY-SA 4.0); residents: CSO Census 2022 (CC BY 4.0).
Having a say in how Fethard is run
Check, register or update your address online; the register closes 15 days before a poll (Sundays and holidays aside).
checktheregister.ie ↗Potholes, broken lights, dumping and graffiti, sent to the council.
FixYourStreet.ie ↗Council and municipal district meetings are open to the public, with agendas and minutes online.
tipperarycoco.ie ↗Anyone may make a submission within five weeks of an application, for a fee of €20.
tipperarycoco.ie ↗Each TD’s contact details are on the Oireachtas members page.
oireachtas.ie ↗The Electoral Commission’s guidance for candidates and how to be nominated.
electoralcommission.ie ↗What this data can and can’t tell you
- Single transferable vote. Voters number candidates in order. The quota is the valid votes divided by one more than the seats, plus one. A candidate over the quota is elected and their surplus passes on; when nobody is over it, the lowest is excluded and their votes pass on, until the seats are filled. The last seats can go to candidates below the quota once too few are left to fill them. First preferences show where support started, not who won.
- Which area. A town is placed in its council, local electoral area and Dáil constituency by where its residents live (Census 2022 Small Areas); an area holding 5% or more of them is listed too. Areas reach beyond the town, so their results are the whole area’s.
- Turnout. Votes cast, spoilt ones included, as a share of the register. Registers carry people who have moved or died, so every turnout reads low by a few points; compare areas, not the figure on its own.
- A close last seat. Shown only when the last candidate elected and the one left standing were both in the final count; the gap is between their votes then. Margins are not shown as headlines unless they are among the closest.
- Not on this page. Audited accounts and debt are published only as PDF statements, so they aren’t on this page. Votes before 2024 aren’t compared: the local electoral areas were redrawn for the 2024 local elections and the Dáil constituencies in 2023, so earlier results don’t cover the same ground. Who chairs each council and who runs it as chief executive aren’t in any open national list; each council names them on its website.
Questions about how Fethard is run
Which council runs Fethard?
The one council for Fethard is Tipperary County Council: Ireland has a single tier of local government.
How many councillors does Fethard have?
The Carrick-on-Suir local electoral area elects 5 councillors: Imelda Goldsboro (Fianna Fáil), David Dunne (Sinn Féin), Michael 'Chicken' Brennan (Labour Party), Mark Fitzgerald (Fine Gael), Kieran Bourke (Fianna Fáil).
Which party has the most seats on Tipperary County Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Independent 14 · Fianna Fáil 10 · Fine Gael 10 · Labour Party 3 · Sinn Féin 2 · Workers and Unemployed Action 1 of 40 seats; a majority needs 21.
Who are Fethard’s TDs?
Tipperary South elects 3 TDs: Mattie McGrath (Independent), Michael Murphy (Fine Gael) and Seamus Healy (Independent).
What was the turnout in Fethard?
In Carrick-on-Suir, 54.3% of registered voters turned out in June 2024 (Ireland: 49.4%). In Tipperary South, 60.6% in November 2024 (59.7%).
When are the next elections in Fethard?
Local elections are held every five years, so the next are due in 2029, in May or June. A general election must be held within five years of the last one (November 2024), sooner if the Dáil is dissolved.
What does Tipperary County spend?
Tipperary County Council plans to spend €274.2M on day-to-day services in 2026, the most of it on environment and fire.
Sources: Local and general election results 2024: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (CC BY-SA 4.0); areas matched to towns by TownRatings from Tailte Éireann boundaries and CSO Census 2022 Small Areas (CC BY 4.0). · TDs: Houses of the Oireachtas Open Data (Oireachtas PSI Licence, CC BY 4.0). · Boundaries: Tailte Éireann (CC BY 4.0); population: CSO Census 2022 (CC BY 4.0).. Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).