Every party has seats they are targeting as potential gains and seats they hold that they are defending in this general election.
So where should we look on Saturday, as tallies evolve into count results, to see which parties are having a good day?
Let’s start with Fine Gael. If it is to become the largest party in the Dáil, it will be looking for gains in Tipperary, in Clare, in Galway, in Cork south west and Cork north west.
The bonanza would be a second seat in Simon Harris’s own constituency of Wicklow or a third in Mayo. If the party is having a bad day, its seats in Wexford and Kerry may slide away, while their Donegal seat seems to be gone.
Targets
For Fianna Fáil, Carlow-Kilkenny, Tipperary south, Kerry and Mayo are among the key targets for gains. A bad day would threaten seats they hold in Galway’s east and west, Wicklow and Cork north west.
Sinn Féin will be targeting gains in Wicklow/Wexford, in Tipperary north, Meath east and Sligo-Leitrim. If Sinn Féin doesn’t gain a tailwind, seats in Kildare south, Tipperary and Clare won’t be retained or regained.
Aontú sees Cork northwest, Meath east and Wexford as opportunities, while Independent Ireland will look to Clare, Mayo and Galway east and west as key targets.
The Green Party will hope to retain its seats in Carlow/Kilkenny, Waterford and Wicklow, and will hanker after a seat in Clare. The Social Democrats will look to hold in Cork south west and Wicklow. Labour will have high hopes for holds in Wexford and Tipperary north.
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