Abdul Turay, the British journalist who ran in the Tallinn municipal elections, will in fact be taking a seat on the city council, thanks to a combination of strong voter support and candidates who will retain their positions in Parliament.

Turay's party, the Social Democrats, ended up with eight seats in the 79-seat council. These would have been filled by mayoral candidate Andres Anvelt, Vadim Belobrovtsev, Jaak Juske, Anto Liivat, Hanno Matto, Barbi-Jenny Pilvre-Storgard, Indrek Saar and Rainer Vakra, but as Anvelt, Saar and Vakra will remain in Parliament, their seats will go to Turay, Külli Urb and Lauri Laats, reported Postimees.

The Essex native, who is best known in Estonia for his political columns in a national daily, garnered a respectable 516 votes in the City Center voting district, beating out several more seasoned local political figures.