The race for the six seats up for grabs in the Boyle Municipal District will come to a conclusion this weekend, with voters taking to the polling stations to select at least three new councillors for the area.
Of the six current councillors, only three are seeking re-election: Councillors Tom Crosby, Valerie Byrne, and Liam Callaghan. The remaining three — councillors Joe Murphy, John Cummins, and Micheal Mulligan — have all decided not to go forward again for another term for a variety of reasons.
In total, there are 16 candidates in this area which represent a broad range of parties — two from Fianna Fáil, three from Sinn Féin, two for Fine Gael, six are Independents, one represents Aontú, with one from Independent Ireland, and one from The Irish People.
Overall, there are six women running for one of the 18 seats on Roscommon County Council and, of these, four are based in the Boyle area: Sitting councillor Byrne (Independent), with new faces Leah Cull (SF), Dympna Daly Finn (FG), and Angela Beirne (SF).
The main issues many of them have highlighted are in relation to derelict homes and bringing them back into use, support for small businesses and job creation, along with fostering a positive change and being a strong voice for the people of Roscommon.
At the moment, the Boyle Municipal District is represented by two Fianna Fáil councillors, two Independent councillors, one Sinn Féin councillor, and one Fine Gael councillor, but how that balance of power plays out in the next term will be in the hands of voters.
The 16 candidates running in the Boyle Local Electoral Area.
