“An Amazing Journey” – John Moran is ‘Honoured’ to be Elected Mayor of Limerick in Historic Poll

John Moran pictured above was surrounded by family and supporters the incoming Mayor of Limerick said he was “blown away” by the support he received across the county. Picture: Kieran Benson

John Moran ran as an independent candidate and was elected Mayor of Limerick after two days of counting at Limerick Racecourse

John Moran has made history by becoming the first Mayor in Ireland to be directly elected by the public.

The Limerick man ran as an independent candidate and was elected Mayor of Limerick after two days of counting at Limerick Racecourse in Patrickswell.

Mr Moran topped the poll with 28,451 votes after 12 counts. He was elected without reaching the quota of 39,873. The total valid poll was 79,745.

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Surrounded by family and supporters the incoming Mayor of Limerick said he was “blown away” by the support he received across the county.

He thanked the electorate for trusting in his vision for Limerick, saying: “It was amazing to see that this was a campaign where we picked up votes right across the county. People had their different views but pretty much, I think, the vision that we all had for Limerick was the same. Now it’s just a case of implementing that vision.”

John Moran had advocated for the introduction of a directly elected mayor when it was put before the electorates in Limerick, Waterford and Cork in 2019.

Only the people of Limerick voted in favour of the plebiscite. The proposal was approved with 52.4% voting ‘Yes’.

The decision marked a historic change in the governance of Limerick, allowing for a mayor with executive powers to be elected, which is unprecedented in Ireland.The incoming Mayor of Limerick says the journey continues: “They came out in numbers to vote for this role five years ago and they came out again. This was the closest you’ll ever get in an Irish election to a job interview and I think the electorate took the time to understand the policies that the candidates had and what their credentials were.

“I think it’s going to be an amazing journey for everyone in Limerick and I am so happy that you guys have chosen me and trusted me to do this. Thank you very much,” he added.

Vesting Day for the Mayor of Limerick is this Friday, 14^th June.

Chief Executive of Limerick City and County Council, Dr Pat Daly says the new Mayor will have the full support of the Council:

“Congratulations to John Moran on his successful campaign. We are all looking forward to working with the new Mayor of Limerick to continue the growth of our city and county. He will have full support from the staff and management at Limerick City and County Council and we’ll continue to build on the great work we have done already in collaboration with the elected members. As a local authority, we have been embracing change for the last ten years since the city and county councils amalgamated and that has led to incredible success. We anticipate even more investment and growth for Limerick in the years to come.”

Limerick mayoral candidate, Helen O’Donnell, has congratulated the newly designated Directly Elected Mayor of the city and county.  

“I want to congratulate John Moran on being voted as Limerick’s first Directly Elected Mayor. I look forward to his visions for Limerick being realised over the next five years.”

She continued: “This has been an historic weekend for Limerick, and I want to extend a special word of thanks to everyone who voted for me on Friday; I am so grateful for your continued support throughout my mayoral campaign. 

“Thank you to everyone who opened their doors, spoke with us on the streets, and attended local meetings and gatherings around Limerick City and County. The days have flown by, and I want to thank my family and friends for their unwavering support and my fantastic team who have been working tirelessly since we launched my campaign on March 11^th. Thank you also to the returning officer and all the count staff for their hard work over the last few days.”

Late on Sunday night the counting of local election ballots in Limerick’s six electoral areas was completed.

Among the 40 councillors elected are ten newcomers. The new council will also have 12 female elected representatives, the highest ever on the Council.

Find out more about the local elections on Limerick.ie/Count.

Read more about Mayor of Limerick position on Limerick.ie.

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About John Moran:

John Moran grew up in Limerick. His parents hail from West Limerick and East Kerry and the family returned from Birmingham to Limerick when he was aged 4.

He moved abroad in the 1980’s working in both New York and Sydney before returning to work in Dublin.

A lawyer and banker by trade, the incoming Mayor of Limerick served as Secretary General of the Department of Finance between 2012 and 2014, working closely with then Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan. Mr Moran previously served on the board of the European Investment Bank (2013 – 2018) and he chaired the Land Development Agency (LDA) from 2019 to 2021.