TURNOUT LATEST: Tallies show low turnout across Laois

A sample of votes from polling stations across Laois taken less than an hour before voting ended suggests a turnout of around 35 percent in the county.  

The tallies were taken with just 45 minutes of voting remaining at 9.15pm. In Portlaoise and Mountmellick the turnout was at 32 percent while in Portarlington it was at 37 percent and in Graiguecullen the figure was 34 percent. 

Of three booths with 1,924 voters in Knockmay National School in Portlaoise there were a total of 624 votes by 9.15pm. Three booths at Scoil Phadraig Naofa BNS in Mountmellick with 2,019 registered voters counted 658 votes and at Portarlington Presentation School where the three booths had 1,545 registered voters and 579 votes. Meanwhile, out of the  2,131 registered voters in St Fiac’s Hall in Graiguecullen there were 785 votes at 9.15pm.

Voting closed at 10pm. 

Turnout had been expected to be poor in this Presidential Election which was dogged by criticism of the nomination process. That process resulted in just three official candidates on the ballot paper in the race to the Aras and saw a campaign launched to spoil votes. Bad weather is also thought to have contributed to the low numbers attending polling stations.   

The three candidates on the ballot paper Catherine Connolly, Heather Humphreys and Jim Gavin, who unusually dropped out of the race but remained on the paper. Voting concluded at 10pm tonight and counting is set to begin in Portlaoise at 9am tomorrow morning.