A Kilkenny Councillor has swapped the Labour Party for Sinn Fein.
Denis Hynes made the announcement this morning.
He polled 2,208 first preference votes in the 2020 general election.
Denis, who is also a SIPTU worker, was selected at the Labour Party Convention in February 2019.
He was elected to the local authority and later ran in the General election, but was unsuccessful.
Kilkenny Councillor Denis Hynes has defected from the Labour Party to join Sinn Féin. He polled 2,208 first preference votes in the 2020 general election
— Seán Defoe (@SeanDefoe) November 24, 2021
Statement from the Labour Party:
The Carlow/Kilkenny Labour Party has expressed its disappointment with the decision of Cllr. Denis Hynes to leave the party, and will now work to ensure the party wins back the seat it has held in the Castlecomer electoral area for generations in the next local elections, and that former Cllr Maurice Shortall worked so hard to ensure was retained in 2019.
Constituency Chairperson, Seán Ó hArgáin, expressed the disappointment of local members:
“Cllr Hynes joined the Labour Party in recent years and was accepted by Labour members, not only as a candidate for the local elections but also in the last General Election. He received the active support of the membership, who canvassed on his behalf. He also received considerable support from our TD's and Senators in dealing with issues at national level.
“In particular, he received huge support from long-standing councillor Maurice Shortall, without which he would not have won the seat that the Labour Party has held for generations.
“Our party will commit ourselves to winning back that seat at the next local elections and to continue to represent the people of the North Kilkenny area as we have done since the foundation of our state.
“The Labour Party has a long and proud history of working for the people of Kilkenny, shaping our community to be a better, kinder, fairer place. We will continue to work to deliver the real change that people need in health, housing and care, rooted in dignity and respect for all in society.”
