Less than half an hour later news of the eighth count in Mayo was confirmed. Higgins had lost his seat. His colleague, Enda Kenny, had hung on by 87 votes. It was that sort of election, as Fine Gael lost 23 seats. Big names like Nora Owen, Alan Dukes and Alan Shatter were beaten.

So what has happened to Fine Gael's Gang of 23?

1. Charlie Flanagan (LaoisOffaly). The Flanagan name was a successful political brand in Laois-Offaly for almost 60 years. Oliver J Flanagan first won a seat in 1943. His son, Charlie, was elected in 1987. But after his defeat in 2002, Flanagan went back to his legal career.

"I'm better for the break. I think I see things now from a different perspective, " he says ahead of the Fine Gael convention in a few weeks.

"We're the only constituency where four out of the five TDs are from the government parties. If there's to be a change of government then there will have to be a seat gain for Fine Gael here, " Flanagan says.

2. Nora Owen (Dublin North). The dramatic loss of the former minister's seat was made doubly cruel by the electronic voting shambles. With Labour's Sean Ryan and GV Wright of Fianna Fail standing down there has been speculation that Owen might run again.

She has a straight answer to the question: "I've told the party I'm not standing."

3. Paul Bradford (Cork East). Bradford was an unlucky loser in 2002 as Fine Gael's vote actually held up well in the constituency. He found his way into Seanad Eireann and now the 42-year old is back on the hustings.

He says his attitude is "get on with it".

4. Alan Shatter (Dublin South). Shatter returned to his legal practice after the voters in Dublin South ended his 21-year career as a TD.

"I'd be less than honest if I didn't admit enjoying having a normal life, " he says. Playing league table tennis and "trying to hit a golf ball straight" have filled his leisure hours but politics remains a draw.

Shatter had a fine parliamentary record and admits to getting "unnecessarily exercised" when watching the current government dealing with topics like the family courts and stem cell research. He will battle hard to win a second Fine Gael seat but says, "it's a fight worth fighting".

5. Brian Hayes (Dublin South-West). Often spoken of as a future Fine Gael leader, Hayes's career suffered a huge setback in 2002. Back in the Seanad, where his time in politics began, he is rebuilding. "It will be a tight battle.

The chances are 50:50, " he admits.

6. PJ Sheehan (Cork SouthWest) . Sheehan first contested a Dail election in 1969 and held a seat from 1981 to 2002. Although the colourful Fine Gaeler will be 73 years old at the next election, he is seeking a nomination to run again. Yesterday Sheehan held his regular Saturday morning clinic in Skibbereen.

"The phone never stops, " the former TD says, adding, "I'm still a politician and will be a politician until the day I die."

7. Andrew Boylan (CavanMonaghan). Boylan was first elected to the Dail in 1987 but lost out in 2002. "It was the only election I ever lost. One out of 10 and that's not bad, " the Cavan man says. He polled well in the local elections in 2004 and hopes to secure a nomination at a party convention in April.

8. Gerry Reynolds (SligoLeitrim).Reynolds was elected to the Dail in 1989 but was squeezed out at the last election. "It was difficult. I was first elected at 24 and I was 16 years in Leinster House, " Reynolds admits. He is currently chairman of Leitrim county council.

A redrawing of the electoral boundaries has done little to help. The old SligoLeitrim has been split, with Reynolds' base now in the new three-seat RoscommonSouth Leitrim constituency.

"It will be a difficult task to get a Leitrim candidate elected, " he admits.

9. Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin South-East). This time out Fine Gael has turned to a new candidate, Lucinda Creighton, in Dublin South-East with Frances Fitzgerald shunted towards Dublin MidWest if she's to kickstart her political career. But the former TD will first have to get through a tricky convention in her new constituency.

10. Michael Finucane (Limerick West). Fine Gael is targeting two seats in Limerick West to spring Finucane from the Seanad back into Dail Eireann, where he was a TD from 1989 until 2002. The presence of PD senator Michael Brennan next time makes the constituency less clear-cut than previously.

"I'm out knocking on the doors and I think we have an excellent chance of taking the seat back, " Finucane says.

11. Ulick Burke (Galway East). Burke won a Dail seat in 1997 but five years later he was back in the Seanad.

The party's convention is set for 19 February and Burke will be a candidate.

"On a bad day in 2002 for Fine Gael nationally the party's vote in East Galway increased. So with a breeze at our backs we can win back the second seat, " he says.

12. Deirdre Clune (Cork South Central). Clune first won a Dail seat in 1997 succeeding her father, former party deputy leader Peter Barry, who had represented the constituency for almost 30 years. Clune, who's currently lord mayor of Cork, is now attempting to overturn the 2002 defeat. "It's my intention to seek a nomination. I've kept my profile up and worked at it, " she says.

13. Sean Barrett (Dun Laoghaire). The two outgoing Fine Gael TDs in Dun Laoghaire in 2002, Monica Barnes and Sean Barrett, opted for retirement. None of their replacements were elected. Now party insiders predict a return for the former junior minister who was a TD from 1981 to 2002.

14. Alan Dukes (Kildare South). Defeat for the former Fine Gael leader was one of the biggest shocks in 2002. The loss of his seat signalled an end to his political career. He has developed a new career as a public-affairs consultant and chief executive of the Institute of European Affairs.

15. Jim Higgins (Mayo). Higgins is now a member of the Seanad and also the European Parliament, where he is likely to remain as he will not be a candidate at the next general election.

16. Michael D'Arcy (Wexford). Since losing in 2002, the Gorey man has handed on the political baton to his son, also Michael, who hopes to be a general election candidate.

17. Austin Currie (Dublin Mid-West).Currie's political career started with the civil rights campaign in Northern Ireland in the 1960s but ended in defeat in 2002. He wrote a memoir, All Hell Will Break Loose, in 2004.

18-23Defeat ended the political careers of MJ Cosgrave (Dublin North-East) and Louis Belton (LongfordRoscommon). Jim Mitchell, who lost out in Dublin Central, has since died.

Fine Gael also failed to hold on to the seats of several TDs who retired in 2002, including Monica Barnes (Dun Laoghaire), John Browne (Carlow-Kilkenny) and Liam Burke (Cork North Central).

Two others, Donal Carey (Clare) and Michael Creed (Cork North-West), lost out to party colleagues.

O'ROURKE AND SPRING THE OTHER BIG LOSERS OF 2002

THE Fine Gael losers were the big story in 2002 but there were other high-pro"le casualties.

Mary O'Rourke was the main Fianna Fail shock. The former minister has since rebuilt her career in the Seanad. Last month she took the next step towards a return to the Dail by winning a nomination in Longford/ Westmeath.

Defeat for Dick Spring in Kerry North was another headline story. The former Labour leader had served in three governments and was a key participant in building the peace process in Northern Ireland.

But those achievements mattered little as the voters in Kerry North opted to elect former IRA gun runner Martin Ferris of Sinn Fein.