Fine Gael looks set to lose a seat on the north side of Cork city in the forthcoming general election, according to a MRBI/Evening Echo opinion poll.
Councillor Gerry Kelly received just 5 per cent of first preference votes in the constituency, making it an uphill battle for him to retain the seat held by retiring Fine Gael TD, Mr Liam Burke.
However, it wasn't all bad news for the party with TD Mr Bernard Allen, topping the poll in Cork North Central with a 25 per cent first preference rating.
Mr Allen said he was pleased at his showing in the poll but expressed concern about the possibility of Fine Gael losing a seat in the hotly contested constituency.
"It is a positive piece of news for me but it really is just a snapshot in time. The election is yet to be fought and won. We will fight to keep two seats in this constituency."
Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil TD Mr Noel O'Flynn came second in the poll receiving 18 per cent of the votes, six percentage points ahead of fellow party members Mr Billy Kelleher and Mr Dan Wallace who polled 12 per cent each.
Deputy O'Flynn's controversial remarks about asylum seekers seem to have increased his popularity in Cork North Central - with the poll showing an increase of seven percentage points on his vote in the last election.
The poll also seems to indicate that Fianna Fáil are on track to repeat their coup of 1997 when three of the party's candidates in the north side were returned to the Dáil. Analysts say Councillor Kathleen Lynch of the Labour Party is likely to regain the seat she lost in the last election, winning a 12 per cent first preference vote in the poll. MRBI analyst Mr Ian McShane said Cllr Lynch has the highest number of second preference transfers of any candidate with 17 per cent.
Of the 400 people polled, 18 per cent were undecided and 11 per cent declined to vote.