President of Ireland

Catherine Connolly, President of Ireland

Catherine Connolly is the tenth President of Ireland (Uachtarán na hÉireann), in office since 11 November 2025. She won the 24 October 2025 presidential election as an independent, progressive-left candidate with 53.4% of the vote on a 35% turnout, comfortably defeating Fine Gael’s Heather Humphreys on 39.1%. The result was widely described as a landslide. She is the third woman to hold the office, after Mary Robinson (1990–1997) and Mary McAleese (1997–2011), and succeeded Michael D. Higgins, whose two seven-year terms ended on 10 November 2025. The presidency of Ireland is largely ceremonial: the President signs legislation, serves as supreme commander of the Defence Forces, and convenes the Council of State on matters of constitutional importance.

Connolly was born on 13 July 1957 in Galway, one of fourteen children in a working-class family. She qualified as a clinical psychologist before retraining in law and being called to the Bar in 1991. A member of Galway City Council from 1999 to 2009 (including service as Mayor of Galway in 2004–2005), she was elected to Dáil Éireann as an independent TD for Galway West in 2016 and re-elected in 2020 and 2024. She served as Ireland’s first female Leas-Cheann Comhairle (Deputy Speaker of the Dáil) from July 2020 until her resignation to contest the presidency in September 2025.

The 2025 Election

The October 2025 race was contested by Connolly (supported by the Social Democrats, Labour, People Before Profit–Solidarity, and Sinn Féin), Fine Gael’s Heather Humphreys (a former justice minister), and Jim Gavin (Fianna Fáil, former Dublin Gaelic football manager). Gavin suspended his campaign on 5 October 2025 amid revelations of an unpaid debt to a former tenant, but his name remained on the ballot because nominations had closed on 24 September. Connolly’s campaign emphasised Irish neutrality, opposition to the EU Migration Pact, and a strong stance on Palestine. On 24 October 2025 she won 53.4%, Humphreys 39.1%, Gavin 7.5% — with an unusually high 8% of ballots spoiled, many in protest at the narrow field.

First 100 Days and the Council of State

Since inauguration, Connolly has convened two Council of State meetings — a formal process under Article 26 of the Constitution in which the President may refer legislation to the Supreme Court for a constitutionality review. She referred the government’s International Protection Bill 2026 in April 2026, the most consequential such referral in over a decade, pausing its enactment pending judgment. She was awarded the Freedom of Galway City in March 2026 and made her first state visit abroad to Spain in April 2026.

The Taoiseach and Government

Executive power rests with Taoiseach Micheál Martin (Fianna Fáil), in office since 23 January 2025 following the November 2024 general election. Martin’s coalition combines Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and a group of independent TDs at minister-of-state rank, with a rotation agreement unlike the 2020–2025 Martin-Harris rotation: under the current programme for government, Martin will serve the full term. His predecessor as Taoiseach in 2024 was Simon Harris (Fine Gael); before him, Leo Varadkar.

Relations with the Government

Connolly, a progressive independent, operates with ideological distance from the centre-right Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael government — a configuration reminiscent of Higgins’s later terms. Tension is anticipated over the Irish government’s evolving EU and defence policies; early signalling on the International Protection Bill reference suggests an activist presidency within constitutional limits.