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Sinn Féin's Daithí Doolan celebrates his election. Sam Boal/Photocall Ireland

Victory, despair and an eye on the rugby at the RDS

As the results rolled in, the candidates seeking election to Dublin City Council took it differently.

IT BECAME EASIER and easier yesterday to work out who in the RDS was with what party.

The body language became reminiscent of an evolution chart, the bodies of the respective parties becoming more and more slouched.

At the top, Sinn Féin members. Walking tall, giddy almost, as the party took 18 seats on Dublin City Council – a maximum return. As word filtered that Lynne Boylan will take a European Parliament seat and Paul Donnelly had performed admirably in the Dublin West by-election, their excitement increased.

Slightly less happy, but still noticeably pleased were the People Before Profit Alliance and Green Party supporters, whose parties picked up seats. Whenever the PBPA picked up a seat, chants of “the workers united will never be defeated” filled Simmonscourt.

On the middle of the scale, Fine Gael supporters seemed to be happy enough, though their large number of unsuccessful candidates meant that it was hard to gauge just how pleased they were.

The Fianna Fáil camp were more focused and, though their performance in Dublin has been called brutal, the taking of two seats in Clontarf definitely lifted spirits.

And then, there was Labour. For them, it was a funereal atmosphere as the extent of their wipeout countrywide was revealed.

Senior party figures came and went, Ruairi Quinn making a brief visit to his nephew Oisín, who lost his seat despite his high profile as Dublin Lord Mayor.

Joan Burton came by and brushed off talk of a heave against Eamon Gilmore and other TDs milled around.

One told a journalist that “it hadn’t gone as well as we hoped”. A supporter nearby was less charitable.

As the day wore on, more and more Labour apparatchiks showed, but their enthusiasm dampened. Even those who looked to be safe were muted; the kind of celebrations had when you’ve passed your Leaving and a friend has failed.

In all, it was a day for Sinn Féin, and this being the RDS, a day for rugby.

Catch all of our Election 2014 coverage here

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11 Comments
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    Mute pat murphy
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    Oct 8th 2019, 11:21 PM

    They haven’t gone away yeno

    68
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    Mute DaMoons
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    Oct 8th 2019, 11:50 PM

    @pat murphy: I know, did u read the article on the journal earlier or watch the documentary last week about the British carrying out maiming and killing pretending it was someone else? Until we are a United Ireland, everytime a crime like this is carried out, every reasonable person will have to ask, who really did this and why. The Brits have destroyed trust in media and journalism. When I hear Republicans carried out this and that, i think Miami Showband.

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    Mute Colette Kearns
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    Oct 9th 2019, 1:23 AM

    @pat murphy: Obviously not, remember the days of the “ Tar & feathering “

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    Mute Chief Buck Cat
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    Oct 9th 2019, 1:24 AM

    @pat murphy: Wrong side of town you Anglotard. Bent Billy must not have been paid by little Billy.

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    Mute Bréanainn
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    Oct 9th 2019, 1:29 AM

    Very strange, if this was to happen in North Inner City Dublin, it would be automatically branded a “gangland attack” but because it’s up the North, its automatically viewed as a “paramilitary attack” smells all like anchovies to me. PSNI cant solve a case – easy. Blame it on the RA.

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    Mute STOIC SAVAGE
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    Oct 9th 2019, 7:44 AM

    @Bréanainn: you love an oul anchovie

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    Mute Paddy J
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    Oct 9th 2019, 8:57 AM

    @Bréanainn: I don’t think any of the media have called it a paramilitary attack, it’s referred to as a paramilitary “style” attack, which it is. Whether the vicious attack was perpetrated by people who view themselves as gangsters or paramilitaries it is still criminality.

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    Mute Stevie Doran
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    Oct 9th 2019, 10:48 AM

    @Bréanainn: anchovy brain

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    Mute John Mulligan
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    Oct 9th 2019, 3:36 PM

    @Bréanainn: is there a discernible difference between a gangster and a paramilitary?

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    Mute Donal Connell
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    Oct 8th 2019, 11:25 PM

    They should go away you know

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    Mute DaMoons
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    Oct 8th 2019, 11:53 PM

    @Donal Connell: Agreed. Unity poll now and sort it out. The british cant doing what they are doing under false pretense. For Gods sake, look at Brexit.

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    Mute SC
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    Oct 9th 2019, 7:26 AM

    @DaMoons: The problem with a unity poll it that there are a lot of British colonists in NI and despite not being from there and having a clear vested interest in living in a heavily subsidised colony they will have a say. The actual natives are outnumbered by colonists, which is unfair. If there was to be a vote they could even send in more colonists to secure the region.

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    Mute Paddy J
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    Oct 9th 2019, 8:33 AM

    @SC: In fairness Unionists have been living in Ireland for longer than European people have been living in North America, Australia and New Zealand. Our tricolour devotes an equal share of the flag to them. Any United Ireland will be a new agreed Ireland where Unionism is treated as equal to Nationalism on an All Ireland basis. It can’t and won’t work any other way unless a federal two state solution is the result. If Brexit is anything to go by it will be a long road ahead.

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    Mute David Garland
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    Oct 9th 2019, 10:46 AM

    @Paddy J: The problem with the Unionists in the North is they think they’re superior to the Nationalist Community, like when it comes to “Marching the Queens highway” Also their cousins in the West of Scotland have a saying “The Famine is over, why don’t you go home” No matter where they are, they think they are better than the rest of us.. But the facts are, they were brought over here and were given land that belonged to us. If after a United Ireland they feel like they don’t belong and want to continue marching the Queens highway, head off to London or something where I’m sure all their messing in the summer won’t be tolerated..

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    Mute Clár Mačova
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    Oct 9th 2019, 7:23 AM

    The Waterside is predominantly protestant so for people thinking it was the IRA, you’re probably wrong. It could be but also could be a gang related issue like we have in Dublin

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    Mute Chief Buck Cat
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    Oct 9th 2019, 1:32 AM

    Nothing to do with politics, just your regular criminal underclass justice system being implemented. And judging from the side of the river it happened it was probably a loyal to the half crown beef.

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    Mute Paul Quirke
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    Oct 9th 2019, 12:00 AM

    Twenty years after The Good Friday Agreement…what’s happening is nothing short of a disaster.

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    Mute Jeni Moriarty
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    Oct 9th 2019, 2:26 PM

    That stacey Dooley documentary was a shocking watch, the vigilante actually texts them, meet me here I’ll shoot ya in the knees, it’s done for joy ride s, drugs, anti social behaviour

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