A general election candidate from Ballingarry has stressed the importance of casting first preference votes on polling day.
Patrick O’Doherty is running as an Independent candidate in the Limerick constituency and said that the state will not count all votes in the election.
“Since the 1923 Electoral Act, every Political Party in Government has refused to count the voting preference of everybody who votes”, claimed Mr. O’Doherty.
“This means that if you vote 1, 2, 3, 4, etc. for your preferred candidates and your neighbour votes 1, 2, 3, 4 etc. for his preferred candidates, the State can fully count his voting paper while not fully counting yours.
“First Preferences, therefore, are of pivotal importance. I aim to win First Preference support to ensure election as a strong, clear, independent voice that reports directly to the people of Limerick and only to them”.
He said that if political parties took all three Limerick seats, it would “suffocate the voices of many people who opposed to the plans of the outgoing and, likely, incoming goverments in their present form”.
“The likely incoming FG-Labour Government is running four candidates for the three Limerick Constituency seats. FF, FG and Labour are all fundamentally united in support for the so-called ‘Four Year Plan’ and the consequent IMF-EU finance deal”.
He also challenged the other candidates in his constituency to a public debate.
Mr. O’Doherty is now one of ten candidates seeking one of three seats in Limerick.
