Lucan councillor Ed O'Brien has been elected as the new Mayor of South Dublin County Council.
The Fianna Fail rep was voted in at a meeting of the council at the National Basketball Arena in Tallaght on Friday.
It is the first time in 17 years that South Dublin County Council have elected a Fianna Fail Mayor.
Mayor O’Brien in his acceptance speech said: " I'm truly humbled to stand before you today and accept the role of Mayor of this County.
"I welcome the opportunity to represent you and our County for the next 12 months and to be a standard-bearer in the challenging months which lie ahead.
He continued: “Whilst this is a great honour for me and my party, this is first and foremost an invitation to connect with the community of South Dublin County on your behalf and this is a role which I will embrace and carry out with great energy.”
Mayor O'Brien concluded his speech by added that he was taking up the position "at a time of great uncertainty and indeed great worry for a lot of our community".
He added: "Over the next 12 months, as we emerge from under the fog that is this virus, we must find new ways to connect with our community and deal with the new tests which that community now faces.
"In this year I will be conscious of the role that I, as your Mayor, must play in assisting you and this Council to tackle these issues together.”
Councillor O’Brien was proposed for Mayor by party colleague Councillor Charlie O'Connor and was seconded by the Green Party's Councillor Peter Kavanagh.
Following a roll call vote, Councillor O’Brien was deemed elected to the Office of Mayor of South Dublin County.
Councillor David McManus of Fine Gael and representing the Rathfarnham - Templeogue electoral area was elected Deputy Mayor.
Tributes were paid to the outgoing Mayor, Councillor Vicki Casserly and Deputy Mayor, Councillor Trevor Gilligan, who thanked their fellow Councillors, Chief Executive, Daniel McLoughlin and the management and staff of the Council for their help and support during their term in office.
The annual meeting to elect the Mayor was moved from County Hall, Tallaght to the National Basketball Arean to ensure physical distance guidelines related to COVID-19 could be maintained.
