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Kerry County Council Comhairle Contae Chiarraí
Type
Type	County council of County Kerry
Leadership
Cathaoirleach	Breandán Fitzgerald, FF
Structure
Seats	33
Political groups	Fianna Fáil (9)   Fine Gael (6)   Sinn Féin (4)   Labour (2)   Kerry Ind. Alliance (1)   Independent (11)
Elections
Last election	7 June 2024
Motto
Comhar, Cabhair, Cairdeas (Irish) "Co-operation, Help, Friendship"
Meeting place
Áras an Chontae, Rathass, Tralee (The image shows the new building accommodating Housing Department staff on the south east corner of the County Hall site)
Website
Official website

Kerry County Council (Irish: Comhairle Contae Chiarraí) is the local authority of County Kerry, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and community, roads and transportation, urban planning and development, amenity and culture, and environment. The council has 33 elected members. Elections are held every five years and are by single transferable vote. The head of the council has the title of Cathaoirleach (chairperson). Since 21 June 2024, Breandán Fitzgerald of Fianna Fáil has served in the role. The county administration is headed by a chief executive, Moira Murrell. The county town is Tralee.

History

1898 to 1922

Kerry County Council was established on 1 April 1899 for the administrative county of County Kerry under the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898, legislation passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, of which Ireland formed a part at that time. The 1898 Act introduced elected county councils to Ireland, following their establishment in England and Wales in 1889 and Scotland in 1890. The first election was held on 6 April 1899, and the council first met on 22 April. The first council had 30 members. Of these, 22 were directly elected for single-member county electoral divisions. The remainder of the council consisted of the chairmen of the 6 rural district councils, who were ex officio members, and an additional 2 members who were chosen by co-option. The council initially met in the former Grand Jury room of the Tralee Courthouse in Nelson Street (now Ashe Street), and elections of the entire council were held every three years.

In January 1910 the council moved its headquarters to a purpose-built county hall on Godfrey Place. The method of election was changed to proportional representation under the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1919, with the first elections under the new system held on 2 June 1920. The election took place during the Irish War of Independence, and control of the council was won by Sinn Féin. The building was set on fire by British Black and Tans during the Siege of Tralee of November 1920.

Post-independence

Following the independence of the Irish Free State in 1922, responsibility for local government was taken by the new government.

During the Irish Civil War, the government used its powers to dissolve the council in May 1923, with a commissioner appointed to conduct the business of the council. A new council was elected in May 1926. The council moved to new premises, the Ashe Memorial Hall, Denny Street, Tralee in March 1928. In September 1930 the council was again dissolved and a commissioner appointed. Following the election of a Fianna Fáil government, the Councillors displaced in 1930 were restored to office in May 1932.

In 1942 the number of Councillors was reduced from 30 to 26. At the same time, the county management system was introduced. The council was again dissolved in May 1945, with elections resuming in October 1948. In 1953 the term of office for councillors was increased from 3 to 5 years, and in 1985 the number of Councillors was increased to 27. In January 1989 the council moved to Áras an Chontae, Rathass.

The council is responsible for housing and community, roads and transportation, urban planning and development, amenity and culture, and environment.

Regional Assembly

Kerry County Council has two representatives on the Southern Regional Assembly who are part of the South-West Strategic Planning Area Committee.

Elections

Members of Kerry County Council are elected for a five-year term of office on the electoral system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote (PR-STV) from multi-member local electoral areas (LEAs).

Local electoral areas and municipal districts

County Kerry is divided into LEAs and municipal districts, defined by electoral divisions.

Councillors

The following were elected at the 2024 Kerry County Council election.

2024 seats summary

Councillors by electoral area

This list reflects the order in which councillors were elected on 7 June 2024.

Notes

1. Replaced during term, see table below for details.

Co-options

References

1. "Brassil elected as Cathaoirleach of Kerry County Council". Radio Kerry News. Radio Kerry. 6 June 2014. Archived from the original on 8 June 2014. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
2. "Breandán Fitzgerald elected Cathaoirleach of Kerry County Council". Radio Kerry. 21 June 2024. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
3. "Contact Us". Kerry County Council. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2011.
4. Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898, s. 1: Establishment of county councils (61 & 62 Vict., c. 37 of 1898, s. 1). Enacted on 12 August 1898. Act of the UK Parliament. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book.
5. Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898, s. 124: Commencement of Act (61 & 62 Vict., c. 37 of 1898, s. 124). Enacted on 12 August 1898. Act of the UK Parliament. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book.
6. "Orders declaring the boundaries of administrative counties and defining county electoral divisions: County of Kerry". 27th Report of the Local Government Board for Ireland (Cmd. 9480). Dublin: Local Government Board for Ireland. 1900. p. 269.
7. ^ Quirke, Michael P (1999). "Centenary of Local Government - Kerry County Council". The Kerry Magazine (10). Tralee: Kerry Archaeological and Historical Society: 4–6. ISSN 0085-2503.
8. Lucey, Seán (19 May 2010). "The Poor Law and Local Government in county Kerry, 1850-1921". Economic and Social Research Council. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 27 March 2011.
9. Barrington, T J (1999) . Discovering Kerry. Its History, Heritage and Topgraphy (2 ed.). Cork: The Collins Press. p. 127. ISBN 1-898256-71-3.
10. County Electoral Areas (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 1985, Article 5 (Kerry) (S.I. No. 110 of 1985). Signed on 24 April 1985 by Liam Kavanagh, Minister for the Environment. Statutory Instrument of the Government of Ireland. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book.
11. "All Services". Kerry County Council. Archived from the original on 27 April 2011. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
12. Local Government Act 1991 (Regional Assemblies) (Establishment) Order 2014, Article 5 and Schedule 3 (S.I. No. 573 of 2014). Signed on 16 December 2014. Statutory Instrument of the Government of Ireland. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 3 May 2023.
13. • For initial order see: County of Kerry Local Electoral Areas and Municipal Districts Order 2018 (S.I. No. 619 of 2018). Signed on 19 December 2018. Statutory Instrument of the Government of Ireland. Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 9 March 2019.
    • For order renaming the An Daingean LEA as Corca Dhuibhne see
    • County of Kerry Local Electoral Areas and Municipal Districts (Amendment) Order 2019 (S.I. No. 157 of 2019). Signed on 16 April 2019. Statutory Instrument of the Government of Ireland. Retrieved from Irish Statute Book on 30 October 2023.
14. "Kerry County Council – Elected Candidates". RTÉ News. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
15. Kelleher, Sinead (13 December 2024). "Tommy Cahill set to continue the Kerry family's political legacy as he takes over his father's seat". Irish Independent. Retrieved 18 December 2024.

External links

• Official website

• Politics of County Kerry
• County councils in the Republic of Ireland
• Kerry County Council