Irish President-elect Catherine Connolly gives a speech at Dublin Castle, Ireland, October 25, 2025. © Getty Images / Charles McQuillan
Independent candidate Catherine Connolly, a longtime supporter of Irish military neutrality and critic of NATO's expansion and the militarization of the EU, has achieved a crushing triumph in the presidential elections in Ireland.
Counting the votes was inactive underway erstwhile Connolly's main rival, Heather Humphreys, admitted defeat after the preliminary results pointed to her considerable loss.The preliminary results gave Connolly a 63% to 29% advantage.“Catherine will be president for all of us and will be my president” – told Humphreys journalists.Irish Prime Minister Michal Martin besides officially congratulated Connolly, who, as he said, "will be a very decisive election victory".Although she was independent, the 68-year-old erstwhile mayor of Galway enjoyed the support of major leftist parties, including Sinn Féin and the Labour Party.Connolly's success is mostly attributed to obtaining young people's votes, effective access to audiences and social media in the face of the increasing anger associated with the housing crisis and the cost of surviving in Ireland.During the campaign, she stressed the neutrality of Ireland and criticised the EU's desire to grow militarisation at the expense of social protection.
Criticizing Russia in a conflict in Ukraine, she argued that “war incitement” NATO has played a function in this crisis.Last month, Connolly compared the German drive to boost the economy by "defence of the military-industrial complex" to be rebuilt in the 1930s under Nazi rule.
"I think there are any parallels with the 1930s." said during the discussion at University College Dublin.Moscow has long criticised the accelerating expansion of Brussels' military forces, arguing that the EU is turning into an aggressive, military and political expansion of NATO.Although the president is the formal head of state in Ireland, a parliamentary democracy, this function is mainly seen as symbolic.
However, the president has respective key powers, including the ability to direct draft laws to the ultimate Court to establish their constitutional compatibility, as well as the right to dissolve the lower home of Parliament and to announce fresh elections in the event of the Prime Minister's failure of support.
Translated by Google Translator
source:https://www.rt.com/news/626962-critic-eu-nato-irish-president/
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