The “only Sinn Féin member” having a good day amid elections is imprisoned former councillor Jonathan Dowdall, a Fine Gael Minister has said. Sinn Féin has polled around 11% of the votes currently counted. Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil are in a tight race to be the largest party in local Government. Deputy Carroll MacNeill said the numbers reflect the “hard work” of current councillors and candidates in recent weeks. “You can see people who sling mud on social media and spend a fortune – i.e. Sinn Féin – they get stuck in the mud,” she told The Anton Savage Show. “Simon Harris has put in an extraordinary campaign, but his energy matches the energy that the candidates have had.” On the other hand, Deputy Carroll MacNeill said people do not believe the “magic” that Sinn Féin promises. “People want detail,” she said. “Look, the only Sinn Féin person having a good day is Jonathan Dowdall in Portlaoise Prison who stuck his house up on the market for €800,000. “That is well over the price of what Mary Lou thinks a house in Dublin should be. “It goes to show that people didn’t buy that, that they want detail.” Dowdall is a former Sinn Féin councillor who came to national prominence due to his involvement in the killing of David Byrne in 2016. When he was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison, leader Mary Lou McDonald welcomed the ruling and said “Jonathan Dowdall left Sinn Féin some years ago”. “He subsequently worked with, and supported, a political opponent of Sinn Féin in the Dublin Central Constituency,” she said. ________________________________________________________________________________________________ 📱 Have you downloaded the Newstalk app? - Find the app in the Google Play store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.thisisaim.newstalk&hl=en_IE&gl=US - Find the app via Apple: https://apps.apple.com/ie/app/newstalk-106-108-fm/id372643826 #️⃣ SUBSCRIBE to the Newstalk social channels: - YOUTUBE | youtube.com/@Newstalkfm - TWITTER | twitter.com/newstalkfm - INSTAGRAM | instagram.com/newstalkfm/ - FACEBOOK | facebook.com/newstalkfm - WEBSITE | https://www.newstalk.com/ 🎧 PODCAST - listen at your leisure: newstalk.com/podcasts - iTunes: search for Newstalk in your app! - Spotify: search for Newstalk for our latest pods and news - Or wherever you get your podcasts! 📱GET IN TOUCH WITH NEWSTALK - WhatsApp: get in touch on 0871400106