Peter Casey says despite his team advising him to pull out of the Presidential race, he was determined not to.
Exit polls suggest he'll place second to Michael D Higgins - securing some 21% support.
But he said the projected result is a blip in the road.
"I think my team was amazing - there's only three people on the team.
"They sat me down after the first week and said 'Look, you need to pull out - you're not going to get one nomination'.
"And then I got the four nominations, and they said 'OK look, now's the perfect time to pull out because you've got four nominations (and) you haven't let yourself down".
"(But) I'd be letting everybody who nominated me down".
"You have to believe that you can achieve your dreams and you have to then work hard 100 hours a week minimum and you will achieve your dreams.
"This is just a little blip in the road".
On his controversial Traveller comments made during the campaign, he said: "I just simply brought to the fore something that was there already".
