Election 2023: Sinn Fein continue winning streak as candidate tops poll in overwhelmingly-unionist area

There were cheers and ‘yeoos’ of delight from Taylor McGrann’s colleagues as he was revealed to have sailed past the quota of 1,017 votes with ease, garnering a total first-preference tally of 1,326.

In 2019, he had garnered 765 first-preference votes.

Elected alongside him today with a lower share of the vote was Matthew Brady of the DUP (1,220), Robert Foster of the UUP (1,138), and Billy Webb of the Alliance (1,085).

Councillor McGrann drew criticism in 2020 for his remarks about IRA enforcer Bobby Storey.

He had said: “Bobby Storey throughout his life gave everything so that the people could live a better one.

"He will live on in the hearts and minds of Irish Republicans forever, a great leader.️

“The Brits couldn’t break Bobby and they won’t break us, onward to the Republic. Rest easy Bobby.”

And pinned to the top of his Twitter feed today is this message: “Back in 1989, @SFNorthBelfast stood there [sic] first candidate Ex-prisoner and blanket man Liam Collins. We polled 96 votes.

"In 2019 30 years on Liam announced me as the first ever elected Republican in the area as my election agent, comrade and friend.”

At the heart of Macedon is the sprawling loyalist-dominated estate of Rathcoole, and according to the 2011 census some 68% of people in Macedon indicated that they were British, while 30% said Northern Irish.

By contrast only 11% identified as Irish (people could select more than one identity).

And back in 2019, the DUP had garnered three seats in Macedon with 43% of the first preference vote, followed by Alliance (18%, one seat), UUP (15.3%, one seat) and Sinn Fein (12.2%, one seat).

Councillor McGrann’s win is part of a Sinn Fein surge in the council area more generally.

In 2019, the party came back with five councillors for the entire area.

Now, even though counting is not yet finished, it already has seven, with an eighth – Maighread Ni Chonghaile – almost certain to take a seat too.

Stay tuned.

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