Galway Bay fm newsroom - The Social Democrats are remaining tight-lipped over a replacement for Owen Hanley on Galway City Council.
His seat is now vacant following his resignation last week.
Owen Hanley stepped down last week after allegations were made against him on social media.
Announcing his resignation, he said the allegations are a "very serious matter" and it was the "correct thing" to do.
He further acknowledged they'll take a considerable length of time to be investigated fully by the appropriate authorities.
Political eyes are now on his replacement - but the Social Democrats have remained tight-lipped, and have only confirmed to Galway Bay fm News that a replacement will be announced in "due course".
A statement adds that it is appropriate that Mr Hanley resigned - and reiterated that it takes the allegations extremely seriously.
It further states the party notified the relevant authorities as soon as it became aware of them, and removed the party whip from Mr. Hanley.
So what about his replacement?
In the 2020 General Election, Soc-Dem candidate Niall Ó Tuathail came close to securing a seat in the Dáil for Galway West, but lost out on the 11th count.
Meanwhile, in the 2019 local elections, Sharon Nolan and John Crowely had strong showings in Galway City Central and Galway City West.
There's also a solid base of local party activists who could be selected to step up.
Whatever the choice, once a nomination is made to replace Owen Hanley, it'll go before Galway City Councillors for formal noting.
