Cork City Council: 1979 Local Election
| Party | Seats | Votes | Share | Candidates | Constituencies | |||||
| Fianna Fáil |  | 11 | (-5) | 18813 | 39.8% | (-2.9%) | 29 | (+2) | 6 | |
| Fine Gael |  | 10 | (-1) | 16750 | 35.4% | (+1.9%) | 24 | (+2) | 6 | |
| Labour Party |  | 4 | (+2) | 7454 | 15.8% | (+2.8%) | 16 | (-6) | 6 | |
| Sinn Féin (Workers' Party) |  | 0 | 2259 | 4.8% | (+4.8%) | 9 | (+9) | 5 | (+5) | |
| Independent |  | 0 | (-2) | 2014 | 4.3% | (+0.1%) | 6 | (+3) | 4 | (+2) |