FINGAL County Council and Dublin City Council have announced their new mayors for a one-year term of office.
Cllr Eoghan O’Brien (FF), who represents the Malahide-Howth Local Electoral Area (LEA), has been elected Mayor or Fingal while Cllr Paul McAuliffe (FF) becomes the 350th Lord Mayor of Dublin.
Cllr O’Brien has been a member of Fingal County Council since 2007 when he was co-opted to fill the seat vacated by his brother Darragh following his election to Dáil Éireann.
Originally from Malahide, he now lives in Kinsealy and works as a Business Development representative with FMCG.
Cllr O’Brien, who was proposed and seconded by Fianna Fail party colleagues, Cllr Darragh Butler and Cllr Adrian Henchy, received 23 votes.
Cllr Tom O’Leary (FG) received seven votes, Sinn Fein’s Cllr Paul Donnelly received five and Cllr Paul Mulville of the Social Democrats received four.
At the first meeting of the new council at Fingal County Hall, Swords, tributes were paid to the outgoing Mayor, Cllr Antony Lavin, and Deputy Mayor, Cllr Grainne Maguire.
Fingal County Council’s interim chief Executive AnnMarie Farrelly presented Cllr Lavin with a commemorative medal and a photograph album recording his year in office.
Cllr Lavin thanked Cllr Maguire for her support as Deputy Mayor during the year and also his fellow councillors and the chief executive, and council staff for all the assistance they had given him.
Cllr Tom Kitt has been elected Deputy Mayor of Fingal.
Cllr Kitt, who represents the Ongar Local Electoral Area (LEA), is a new councillor who was elected for the first time last month.
Originally from County Galway, he lives in Clonsilla where he is a community activist.
Meanwhile, Cllr McAuliffe replaces Cllr Nial Ring (Ind) as the city’s First Citizen.
Cllr McAuliffe was born and reared in Finglas and his family has lived in the area for more than 60 years.
He was educated at De La Salle Primary School, Beneavin College Secondary School and the National College of Ireland.
Cllr McAuliffe has been an elected member of Dublin City Council since 2009, where he has represented the people of Finglas, Santry, Glasnevin and Ballymun. He has also served as the chairperson of the City Council’s Enterprise and Economic Development Committee and he is a member of the seven-person Corporate Policy Group (CPG) chaired by the Lord Mayor.
As chairperson he led the City Economic and Community Plan and published the Dublin City Brexit Summits.
Cllr McAuliffe also served as the Chairperson of the City's Local Community Development Committee (LCDC) where he has overseen the Social Inclusion Community Activation Programme.
Outside of politics he has been actively involved in local youth and community groups and he has worked as Communication Manager with the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland and the Irish Platform for Patients' Organisations Science and Industry.
