Connolly confirms intention to run for presidency
Speaking on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta, the Galway West TD said she took her time to make up her mind and correspondence from supporters helped her reach the decision.
So far, she has the backing of 12 Social Democrats, including Eoin Hayes, as well as the two People Before Profit TDs and a number of Independent TDs.
only one put forward when nominations closed yesterday afternoon.
Fine Gael will ratify her candidacy in September.
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Extra.ie
2 hours ago
- Extra.ie
PJ Gallagher would run for President on one condition
We're at the time of year where everyone who is anyone is being asked on whether they'll run for Áras, and PJ Gallagher is the latest to 'rule himself out.' The comic and presenter made the admission on his radio show on Wednesday morning, revealing what one thing could potentially change his mind. To date, Fine Gael candidate Mairead McGuinness and independent TD Catherine Connolly have confirmed they will launch campaigns to become the next president. We're at the time of year where everyone who is anyone is being asked on whether they'll run for Áras, and PJ Gallagher is the latest to 'rule himself out.' Pic: Instagram With plenty of speculation as to who else could throw their hat in the ring, PJ Gallagher and his Radio Nova co-host Jim McCabe had their say on some celebrity candidates. Jim said: 'Michael Flatley was being rumoured to be considering a run and we just thought, look, an auld celebrity candidate is never a bad thing just to keep the general interest up' PJ added that it 'puts a bit of spice' into the campaign. With plenty of speculation as to who else could throw their hat in the ring, PJ Gallagher and his Radio Nova co-host Jim McCabe had their say on some celebrity candidates. Pic: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock Jim went on to share that listeners to the show had text in putting Johnny Logan's name out there, before then asking PJ was he in or out. 'I am ruling myself out,' PJ confirmed, 'Both Jim and me are ruling out a dual-presidency and until there is a dual presidency.' 'And we are adamant in that,' Jim added with a laugh, 'We will not accept the presidency until it's a dual presidency and we've established what way the Áras will be split up and who gets which bits.' View this post on Instagram A post shared by Radio Nova 100 (@radionova100) 'As long as Jim gets to do the awkward parties and I get to just hang around the house,' PJ said. The conversation led Jim to put fellow broadcaster Pat Kenny's name forward, noting he would be a 'great President.' 'Yeah,' PJ said before launching into an impression of the former Late Late Show host. Jim said Pat was a 'very articulate' man who 'holds himself well.' Pic: G. McDonnell / Jim said Pat was a 'very articulate' man who 'holds himself well.' PJ continued with his impression of the broadcaster, with Jim admitting Kenny for President would be 'worth it just to see the presidential addresses.' 'People of Ireland,' the pair said, exaggerating the pronunciation so to sound like Pat. A new President will be elected later in the year as Michael D Higgins steps down from the role after 14 years at the helm. The current favourite to take over is former MEP Mairead McGuinness, who is currently running unopposed for Fine Gael after Seán Kelly confirmed he would not be seeking a nomination from the party.
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
Catherine Connolly launches presidential bid saying she wants to ‘empower people to find their own voices'
Independent TD Catherine Connolly has launched her bid to become president, saying 'we're at a critical state in our country' and she is standing to 'empower people to find their own voices'. The Galway West TD made the announcement outside Leinster House on Wednesday, flanked by politicians from the Social Democrats and People Before Profit as well as Independents who are set to nominate her to appear on the ballot paper. During a press conference she spoke about her vision for the presidency, defended her record including a trip she took to Syria during dictator Bashar al-Assad's time in power and spoke about her nomination of journalist Gemma O'Doherty for president in 2018. Announcing her election bid, Ms Connolly said: 'I do so with the deep conviction that together, we can make this country better, and that we can make this country live up to its name, the Republic, and show that there is a different way.' READ MORE She said: 'We're at a critical state in our country', and added she was standing 'to enable people, to empower people to find their own voices, to stand up and be counted, to say there is a different way'. Ms Connolly said: 'We must deal with climate change. We must be a voice for peace. We have to stop the normalisation of war and violence. We have to stop the normalisation of homelessness. We have to say that these problems are not inevitable.' She added: 'They are man-made, policy driven, and we can have a different type of country and a different type of world. 'That is what motivates me'. Syria trip Since it emerged last week that she would be throwing her hat in the ring, a trip she took to Syria in 2018 along with then-TDs Clare Daly , Mick Wallace and Maureen O'Sullivan has resurfaced. At the time, al-Assad was still in office and engaged in a brutal civil war. Asked about the visit, she said she funded the trip herself, its purpose was 'fact-finding' with fellow TDs and activists and she 'met no member of government'. She said she visited a refugee camp outside Damascus and 'saw firsthand the destruction of a whole city', adding: 'I mean, my idea, up to then, of a refugee camp wasn't up to scratch really.' Ms Connolly said they were shown around by Palestinians and 'we stayed with them all of the time'. They travelled to Aleppo and met the Chamber of Commerce and also had a meeting with Unicef as well as visiting a convent. Catherine Connolly launching her presidential bid outside the Dáil on Wednesday. Photograph: Alan Betson Catherine Connolly answering questions from members of the media outside the Dáil on Wednesday. Photograph: Alan Betson Catherine Connolly with supporters as she launches her presidential bid outside the Dáil on Wednesday. Photograph: Alan Betson 'On no occasion had I anything to do with the government, nor did I ever utter one word of support for Assad,' she said. Presidential salary The salary for the presidency is approximately €350,000 and the current office-holder Michael D Higgins has waived a portion of it as well as Oireachtas pensions over the course of his two terms. Ms Connolly said she will 'look at the salary' and is 'open to ideas on that' adding: 'I'm certainly going to use it for the common good.' She said she would discuss it with her team and set out how she would use the salary 'in due course'. Northern Ireland On her position in relation to Northern Ireland she said: 'I think we're going to have United Ireland very soon' but it would not be 'immediate'. She said the Belfast Agreement 'has set the framework for that. Tremendous work has been done on the ground, with cross-Border bodies, and I look forward to the day when we have a United Ireland.' Ms Connolly added: 'There must be consent. I absolutely value the diversity, and we must value the different backgrounds in Northern Ireland.' Ms Connolly was among a number of Oireachtas members that indicated they would support Ms O'Doherty's bid to get on the presidential election ballot paper in 2018. Ms O' Doherty was unsuccessful in her attempt to win enough nominations to run and she subsequently became involved in far-right and anti-immigration activism. Ms Connolly said she does not regret making the nomination in 2018 saying Ms O'Doherty 'had done some good work as an investigative journalist.' She added: 'I didn't know her personally, but I knew her role, and I gave her a nomination when the time came. That didn't mean I was supporting her.' Ms Connolly said: 'Do I regret what's happened to the relation to her? Absolutely. Do I support her in any way? Not at all.' Political style Asked about a perception that she has a combative political style, Ms Connolly said she disputed that and said she would 'rephrase' it, adding: 'I think I've been very straight, honest and direct. I think I'm a very hard worker.' 'If as a society we don't value hard work and straight and blunt talking without any spin, then we're in trouble. 'I don't think I've set out to stir things or to be that type of politician.' She pointed to her time as Leas Cheann Comhairle in the last Dáil, saying: 'I've shown that I've been fair, that I'm able to put aside my strong opinion and function as a Leas Cheann Comhairle.' She said: 'I'm a democrat to my fingertips.' Earlier, she told RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta's Adhmhaidin programme that she did not make the decision to contest the election overnight and was doubtful enough about the move, but was convinced by correspondence she got from people asking her to run. 'I was taken aback by the support I received, I wasn't expecting that level of support from people across the country, in English and Irish,' she said speaking in Irish. McGuinness nomination On Tuesday, Fine Gael's Mairead McGuinness became the first official nominee in the presidential race to replace Michael D Higgins after his term comes to an end in the autumn. Ms McGuinness, who was a TV presenter and farming journalist before becoming an MEP and EU commissioner, is the nominee to become Fine Gael's presidential candidate. [ Profile: The outspoken left-wing campaigner running for president Opens in new window ] The election to succeed Mr Higgins is set to take place in late October or early November. Prospective candidates need the support of 20 Oireachtas members to get on the ballot paper. Fianna Fáil has not clarified if it will run a candidate and is to make a decision in the early autumn. Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has also refused to rule herself out of the running. Connolly profile Ms Connolly has received the backing of the Social Democrats and People Before Profit, with the Labour Party 'very seriously' consider backing her. Ms Connolly worked as a barrister and a clinical psychologist before becoming a councillor for 17 years and spending a term as Galway mayor until 2005. She resigned from the Labour Party in 2006 after being turned down to be a running mate of then incumbent TD Mr Higgins. She was first elected to the Dáil as an independent candidate for Galway West in 2016. - Additional reporting PA
Irish Independent
2 hours ago
- Irish Independent
United Ireland coming ‘very soon', says Catherine Connolly as she launches Presidency campaign with bid to woo Sinn Féin
The Independent Galway TD has promised not to take her full salary as she launched her campaign as a Left candidate Catherine Connolly has launched her Independent campaign for the Presidency, promising not to take her full salary - but looking forward to a United Ireland "very soon". Ms Connolly defended a trip to Syria with Mick Wallace, Clare Daly and Maureen O'Sullivan when dictator Bashir al-Assad was in power, and said she was "right at the time" when she previously backed controversial journalist Gemma O'Doherty for a Presidential run. The Galway West Independent rejected the idea that she was the "continuity candidate" after 14 years of Michael D Higgins, for whom she wanted to be a running mate. She left the Labour Party when that bid was rejected, saying it had lost its soul – but refused to answer questions about taking its money for her campaign, which she believes will cost between €500,000 and €1 million. Ms Connolly, a former leas cheann comhairle, became emotional when she recalled seeing Catholic refugees from Northern Ireland arrive in Galway in the late summer of 1969. 'I think Northern Ireland is extremely important. I think we're going to have united Ireland very soon," Ms Connolly said in response to a suggestion from the Irish Independent that she had been described as a republican socialist. "I think the Good Friday Agreement has set the framework for that," she said, adding that she would welcome the backing of Sinn Féin. "I think tremendous work has been done on the ground with cross-border bodies, and I look forward to the day when we have a united Ireland," Ms Connolly said. But she added: "I absolutely value the diversity, and we must value the different backgrounds in Northern Ireland." Asked whether there was any difference between her position and that of Sinn Féin, she said: "I can tell you my position. You're left to kind to compare and contrast that, which will fail. "But I grew up in Galway and witnessed the refugees coming to Galway. I was young at the time, and they came down, and they were put up in various colleges – and I witnessed their terror, their upset, and their utter desire for peace,' she said. ADVERTISEMENT So far the only other confirmed candidate is former MEP Mairéad McGuinness, who will run for Fine Gael. Neither Fianna Fáil nor Sinn Féin have decided whether they will run a candidate, while Labour is currently deciding whether to back Ms Connolly after she met the party earlier this week. Ms Connolly said she was "fully ready now for the campaign", adding: "We don't have a huge, big machine, and I think we have conviction." So far backed by Independents and the Social Democrats, she said: "We believe in what we're doing, and I think we are happy to put forward that vision." Social Democratic support had "come from the ground up, and I understand it's similar with People Before Profit", Ms Connolly said. She said she was going to discuss the Presidential salary with her team – "There are lots of decisions to make here about the campaign and how I use the salary is one of those.' "All I can say at this point is I have stood as a woman who speaks bluntly and who speaks as honestly as I can." She was asked about the war in Ukraine, and said the Russian invasion was "wrong, illegal and unacceptable", adding "we need to find a voice for diplomacy. We need to get peace." She added, however: "I think could have been prevented beforehand. What they've done is utterly wrong. It's just inexcusable. But I think we could have worked before that in terms of diplomacy." She said her clapping for a live video address by Volodomyr Zelensky to the Dáil had been scrutinised, and how long it had lasted. "I stood and I clapped, and the level of interest from certain quarters in the media was that I didn't clap long enough and I didn't clap hard enough," she said. "I was nauseous at the war. I would have stood in silence." She refused to comment on rival contender Ms McGuinness, except to say: "My views on the Fine Gael party are well-known.' Standing outside Leinster House, Ms Connolly added: "I'm going to be presenting myself as a credible candidate for the Presidency with my views, with my track record, and my work ethic. "That's what I will be presenting before the people, and I would hope the people would respond to that."
