Devine ‘hard to catch’ after his first preference haul

As the dust settles on last week’s elections, Fianna Fáil newcomer Alfie Devine credits his 1,236 first preference vote haul for securing a seat in the Kinnegad LEA.

He said the first preferences meant he would be “hard to catch” after the first count, when only Denis Leonard was ahead, and he “started to relax” from then.

The first-time runner from Castlepollard eventually placed third and was elected on count 10 last Monday, successfully retaining the seat vacated by veteran Fianna Fáil councillor Paddy Hill.

Mr Devine credits a multi-faceted campaign that included a mix of canvassing and social media for getting him over the line.

“You have to knock on every door, you have to, and if you need to spend 15 or 20 minutes at each door, you have to do it,” he said.

“I went down to Coole one evening when it was already dark, and I spent two and a half hours between seven doors.

“If people want to talk to you about something, if they have an issue, you have to work it out, talk it out, and finish it.

“You might have to go in for a cup of tea with them too; I spent a lot of time with people, and I think that’s what worked for me.”

He also believes his years of community work boosted his campaign. “I’m the vice chair of Castlepollard Town Team, a great new initiative that involves around 40 people from different groups in the area like the Tidy Towns and things like that,” he said.

“I’ve been involved in lots of other local committees and clubs over the years too and a lot of people would know me from them, they know I can get the work done.

“I also have 30-odd years’ experience as a house builder, my background would be civil engineering, so I would have good knowledge of infrastructure and how things should work, roads and things like that.

“Hopefully all of this will stand to me in the council.”

Mr Devine said he’s looking forward to getting to work and being a strong public representative for north Westmeath.

“There’s everything from potholes in roads to getting people into houses needed in the area; there’s a huge number of issues,” he said.

“There are clubs that need help for funding, people that need help with individual planning applications, advice, and so on.

“I want to help local businesses, hard-working business people, and just get things done.”

Mr Devine added his thanks to those who voted for him and said he “couldn’t be happier” to represent his community.