Local election candidates spent over £58,000

There were 72 candidates vying for 40 seats on Derry City and Strabane District Council in May’s election with total expenses of £58,306.72.

Ulster Unionist Councillor Darren Guy, who secured a seat in the Waterside ward, spent the most on his campaign, a total of £1,556.

Two of his party colleagues also emerged highest spenders in their respective wards.

William Jamieson, who stood in Faughan, spent £1,266 and Andy McKane, a candidate in the Sperrin ward, had expenses of £1,439.95.

The party fielded four candidates and their total spend on the campaign amounted to £5,199.90.

Meanwhile, in the Ballyarnett DEA, SDLP’s Rory Farrell had the highest expenses at £955.78, his party colleague, Cara Hunter, spent most in the Derg ward with expenses of £1,206.13 and in Foyleside People Before Profit’s Shaun Harkin topped the expenses ladder with a spend of £1,136.90.

Eamonn McCann, People Before Profit, had the highest spend in the Moor, £1,195.71.

Alliance candidate for the Faughan ward Anne Murray spent the least on her campaign, £277.77.

Alliance fielded a total of seven candidates in the election and spent a total of £2,698.09 on their campaigns. The party secured two seats on the local council for the first time in over 30 years.

Sinn Fein, the SDLP and the DUP were the three parties with the highest expenses in the local elections. Sinn Fein had 22 candidates and spent £15,769.79; the SDLP, who fielded 14 candidates, had expenses of £13,504.65 and the DUP’s nine candidates spent a total £8,115.05.

Aontu, which had just one candidate - Anne McCloskey in the Ballyarnett DEA - had the lowest expenditure of £811.

There were 11 independent candidates who had expenses totalling £8,187.65 and People Before Profit, who fielded four candidates, spent a total of £4,020.29.