SCENES FROM THE CLASS STRUGGLE IN DUBLIN SOUTH-CENTRAL
Dublin South-Central is a predominantly working-class constituency – two-thirds of voters live in areas here where less than 30% of the Households are headed by a middle-class earner – but there were significant differences between how working-class areas and middle-class areas voted.
For instance in mainly working-class areas (ie less than 30% of middle-class Household heads), Sinn Fein took 28% of the vote, Independents… For Change (Joan Collins) took 17%, Fianna Fail and People Before Profit took 12% each, and Fine Gael were fifth with 10%. Labour took 6%.
A full table is shown below :
| MIDDLE-CLASS HoH | FG | FF | LAB | GP | SD | SF | A-P | IFC |
| Under 30% | 10% | 12% | 6% | 2% | 5% | 28% | 12% | 17% |
| 30% – 50% | 22% | 13% | 10% | 6% | 8% | 16% | 7% | 10% |
| Over 50% | 36% | 20% | 12% | 5% | 7% | 5% | 2% | 3% |
As can be seen the combined left (Sinn Fein, People Before Profit and Independents For Change) took 57% in mainly working-class areas, but only 10% in mainly working-class areas. By contrast the center-right (Fine Gael) took only 10% in mainly-working-class areas, but 35% in mainly middle-class areas.
The animated GIF below shows in succession, Catherine Byrne’s (Fine Gael) vote and then the proportion of Middle-class Households (Blues < 30%, Reds >40%).
As can be seen Byrne polled best in middle-class areas in Chapelizod and Kilmainham along the southern border of the Phoenix Park, along the South Circular Road and Clanbrassil Street and finally between Kimmage and Templeogue.