CHARLES WARD OF the 100% Redress party has been elected in Donegal in the final count that saw him overtake incumbent Fianna Fáil TD Charlie McConalogue.
Ward ran for the party in the local elections earlier this year and failed to be elected, but now he’s headed for Dáil Eireann, where he plans to represent homes in the area that have been affected by defective building blocks.
Speaking to Ocean FM prior to his election yesterday, Ward said that the government would be forced to listen to his party’s demands for 100% redress. “They’ve got one choice now. They have to listen to us, because I’m going to be on the floor of the Dáil.
“They’re going to see somebody’s who’s been affected, 100% redress badge on them, is affected, and they’re in the Dáil, elected by the people of Donegal because they didn’t do their job.”
Ward was ultimately elected yesterday on count 16 to take the fourth seat in the five seater constituency. Speaking on Ocean FM, he said that he appeared to be “transfer friendly”.
Significant victory for 100% Redress Party with the election of Charles Ward. pic.twitter.com/hCWSXEB9Zb
— Highland Radio News (@HighlandNews) December 2, 2024
The party had four councillors elected in June – with Ward and party colleague Eamonn Jackson failing to be elected. Jackson was previously the Chair of the Mica Action Group.
The 100% Redress Party, which was formed last year, said it wants to secure “a genuine 100% redress scheme for all those affected by defective concrete products”.
The scandal first made headlines in 2021 when homeowners saw concrete blocks used to build their homes and were beginning to crumble.
The government introduced a scheme in November 2021 to support affected homeowners to remediate their dwelling and this scheme was enhanced last summer.
The Enhanced Defective Blocks Scheme allows affected homeowners in counties Clare, Donegal, Limerick, and Mayo to apply for a maximum grant of €420,000. Sligo is also set to be added to the scheme.
“Yesterday we were dead and buried at 9:30 and all the way to 5 o’clock hearing the same thing but I knew we’d be transfer friendly. We had to go a different strategic route to garner votes and transfers and we’ve done that,” Ward told the radio station.
When asked what else he would be focusing on while in the Dáil, aside from pushing the issue of redress for affected homes, the healthcare worker said that he would also like to focus on issues within the health system.
“We’re all rounders,” he said of the party. “The most important thing – we’re ordinary people who will have a voice in the Dáil hopefully. It’s very rare that you get someone who can be a healthcare worker less than 20 days ago and be here now, possibly going to be elected to the Dáil.”
He encouraged listeners to be proactive and get involved locally. He said that the party was “very transfer friendly” and that support varied across different areas of the county. “We knew that we would get a certain amount of votes [from more affected areas] and the rest would come through transfers,” he said.
“I could see the path,” he said. “It’s working.”
Pearse Doherty of Sinn Féin was elected on the first count in the ward, securing 18,898 first preference votes. Doherty, who is the deputy leader and finance spokesperson for Sinn Féin, was the biggest name on the Donegal ballot.
Party colleague Padraig Mac Lochlainn was elected on count 2. In later counts, Pat ‘the Cope’ Gallagher (FF), Charles Ward, and Charlie McConalogue (FF) were deemed elected, despite Ward and McConalogue not meeting the quota of 12,771.
Includes reporting by Jane Moore
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say