Former Derry Mayor Elisha McCallion elected to Seanad Éireann

The former Derry MLA and MP was effectively confirmed as a new senator after the 30th count at the Printworks in Dublin Castle when the 10th placed candidate Niall Ó' Tuathail, of the Social Democrats, was eliminated.

Mrs. McCallion had topped the poll on the first count of the election to the Industrial and Commercial Panel on Thursday morning.

However she had to wait until the early hours of Friday before being returned, below quota, as one of nine new senators on the panel.

The Derry politician was the only Sinn Féin candidate in a 35 strong field that included 15 members of Fine Gael and seven members of Fianna Fáil, all of whom transferred strongly along party lines as the count progressed.

She received just 1000 transfers from Fine Gael's Tom Sheahan over 30 stages of the count.

The former Mayor of Derry and Strabane will be formally elected following the distribution of Ó' Tuathail's transfers.

She said: “I'm absolutely delighted to be elected to the Seanad and to be joining the biggest Sinn Féin electoral team across the island of Ireland.

“This is a fantastic opportunity to ensure that the people of the North have another voice in the Oireachtas standing up for their interests.

“Our immediate priority is dealing with the ongoing public health emergency and taking steps to protect the public right across the island and to stop the spread of COVID-19."

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