The count in Midlands North West could take five days because of the record number of candidates contesting for the five seats in the 15-county constituency.
There are 27 candidates in the race in Midlands North West, 10 more than the 17 who contested in 2019. Five years ago the process took four days with all the candidates being elected after the 13th count.
While there were only 13 candidates in 2014 the count lasted for five days because the two candidates for the final seat – Marian Harkin and Pat “the Cope” Gallagher – were very close. A recheck which took 18 hours was done.
On Saturday staff at the counting centres throughout the State will separate European ballots from local election ballots. The local election ballots will then be transferred to local authorities, which will begin counting on Saturday afternoon.
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Both Dublin and Ireland South also have a high number of candidates (23) and it is possible that one or both of the counts will go into a third day. Midlands North West has tended in the past to have the most counts and if it is a tight contest it could be Wednesday at least before the final outcome is known.
The formal count for the European elections will not commence until Sunday. Because it is an EU-wide election the first count cannot be announced until 10pm.
The scale of the operation is reflected in the logistics associated with the Dublin European count. There will be as many as 700 staff employed to count the votes, between counters and supervisors, under the supervision of returning officer Fergus Gallagher.
In excess of 1,500 boxes will be collected from polling stations throughout the city and county. With a high number of candidates in the European elections in the capital (23) it is certain that counting will continue throughout Monday.
The possibility of Dublin’s count running into a third day will depend on how close the candidates are and the number of counts that will be required.
In 2019 polling clerks on election day are paid €367 for being present for the 16 hours voting period. Presiding Officers are paid €485 for the day.
Counters at count centres were paid €272 for the first 12 hours each day and €26 per hour after that.
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