The results for the Irish Language Officer were announced at 8:11 pm at the Grand Social. Having received 2453 votes on the first count, or 68.1 per cent of the votes cast in the race, Mary Kate Ní Artáin was announced the next Irish Language Officer. Hugh Ó Ríordáin received 1047 votes, and Re-Open Nominations (RON) received 99 votes.
This confirms the previous University Times election poll, which had predicted a 63 per cent win for Ní Artáin, whereas Ó Ríordáin had received 35.5 per cent of the poll votes. RON was predicted to attract a mere 1.4 per cent of votes in this race.
Accepting her success, Ní Artáin gave a speech in Irish, in which she thanked the voters, as well as her campaign manager. She said that “[Irish] is for everyone and I am so proud to speak it”.
Ní Artáin had emphasised wanting to improve available supports for Irish speakers transitioning into English-language courses, as well as implementing an option to submit assignments in Irish.
Ní Artáin, when asked to comment further on her win, had this to say: “It is such an honour to be voted as Oifigeach na Gaeilge, and I really, really, really am so grateful to everyone who has put their faith into me, voting for me. And the biggest thing I want to put onto campus is to make this a language for all and to make it accessible and fun as well as a source of pride for everyone. So thank you so much, everyone who was there for me. Thank you so much.”
Additional reporting by Manasvini Naren, Weronika Brzechffa, and John Crofton
