Catherine Connolly, an independent candidate, won a landslide victory in the Irish presidential election, Reuters reported on Saturday.
Connolly, who was backed by left-wing opposition parties, received more than 64.7% of the vote.
Heather Humphreys of the centrist Fine Gael party came in second with 28.2%.
Connolly, a 68-year-old lawmaker from Galway, built her campaign around messages of “peace,” “unity,” and “neutrality.” She comes from the far left of the Irish political spectrum and was supported by Sinn Féin, the Labour Party, the Social Democrats, and other left-wing parties.
Connelly has been highly critical of the United States and the European Union, even though Ireland is largely supportive of the EU. She has expressed her disagreement with the increase in military spending in the EU since the start of the war in Ukraine. Connelly has also criticized the US, the UK, and France for their role in the war in Gaza.
“The Irish president is largely a figurehead who rarely uses her powers to review the constitutionality of legislation, but often speaks on the world stage and invites other heads of state to the country,” Reuters notes.
