Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch is likely to win a seat in Dublin Central, former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has predicted as counting continues following the Republic’s General Election.
Mr Ahern says transfers from eliminated anti-immigration candidate Malachy Steenson will carry the alleged gangland figure over the line for a seat in the same constituency as Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald.
Ms McDonald topped the poll in Dublin Central with 6,389 first preference votes, and claimed her seat on the third count on Saturday in Dublin’s RDS, while Mr Hutch finished in fourth place for first preference votes, with 3,098.
Ms McDonald’s surplus gave Mr Hutch 218 votes, but the elimination of Mr Steenson, who gained just 1,602 first preference votes could see the reported former boss of the Hutch organised crime group claim one of Dublin Central’s remaining seats, according to Mr Ahern.
The ex-Fianna Fáil leader spoke on Newstalk FM on Sunday morning, and said he believed transfers would be in Mr Hutch’s favour.
“There will be a very good transfer from Steenson...if I was to call it I think Gerry Hutch will get the seat,” the former Taoiseach said.
“Gerry Hutch has been around for as long as myself and Gerry Hutch is well-known, the Hutch family is well-known, and I’m not going to go into any morals or any ethics, but I have trampled that ground for 40 years, and Gerry Hutch has been kind to that community in lots of indirect ways.
“His family are well-known, and like it or not, respected by a lot of these people. That’s why he got three thousand votes.”
Mr Hutch’s election campaign followed his not guilty verdict in a trail last year over the murder of David Byrne at a boxing weigh-in in Dublin’s Regency Hotel in 2016.
Mr Hutch was described by the Special Criminal court as the head of the Hutch family.
In October of this year, he was arrested by Spanish police as part of an international investigation into money laundering, before being released on bail.
