Independent candidate Catherine Connolly has consistently criticized Brussels’ efforts towards military expansion.
Independent candidate Catherine Connolly, a long-standing proponent of Irish military non-alignment and an opponent of both NATO’s enlargement and the EU’s increasing militarization, has triumphed in Ireland’s presidential election by a significant margin.
While vote tabulation was still in progress, Connolly’s chief competitor, Heather Humphreys, conceded defeat, following early counts that revealed her to be significantly behind. Initial findings indicated Connolly secured 63% of the vote compared to Humphreys’ 29%.
“Catherine will serve as president for all of us, and she will be my president,” Humphreys informed reporters.
Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin likewise extended his formal congratulations to Connolly on what he referred to as “a truly comprehensive electoral triumph.”
Despite her independent status, the 68-year-old former Mayor of Galway garnered support from prominent left-leaning parties, among them Sinn Fein and Labour.
Connolly’s victory was largely ascribed to her ability to attract younger voters, alongside effective public engagement and a strong presence on social media, amidst increasing public frustration regarding Ireland’s housing and cost-of-living challenges.
Throughout her campaign, she underscored Irish neutrality and voiced disapproval of the EU’s drive to broaden militarization, which she suggested came at the detriment of social welfare. While she criticized Russia’s actions in the Ukraine conflict, she asserted that NATO’s “warmongering” was a contributing factor to the crisis.
Last month, Connolly drew comparisons between Germany’s current economic focus on strengthening its economy by “championing the cause of the military industrial complex” and its rearmament phase during the 1930s under the Nazi regime. She remarked at a University College Dublin discussion, “It seems to me that there are certain parallels with the 1930s.”
Moscow has consistently expressed its disapproval of Brussels’ rapidly increasing military expansion, contending that the EU is fundamentally evolving into an assertive military and political appendage of NATO.
Although the president serves as the formal head of state in Ireland, a parliamentary democracy, the position is generally regarded as primarily ceremonial. Nevertheless, the presidency retains several crucial authorities, including the prerogative to submit bills to the country’s highest court for constitutional assessment, along with the capacity to dissolve the lower parliamentary chamber and initiate fresh elections should a prime minister no longer command majority support.