Westmeath - Green progress could affect FG

PHOTO: Mullingar LEA Green Party candidate Hazel Smyth at the count centre in Moate.

It’s beginning to look as though the Green Party candidate in the Mullingar LEA may cause an upset and thwart Fine Gael’s chance of a second Mullingar seat.

No first vote announcement has yet been made, but Fine Gael TD Peter Burke has admitted that it could be a tight race between Green candidate Hazel Smyth and his party’s Gerard Heery.

When surpluses and eliminations come into play, that will throw around 2,000 votes into the mix.

Deputy Burke estimates that around a third of these won’t transfer, and given where the votes are coming from (Independents and Sinn Féin), it’s possible they could push Ms Smyth ahead.