Original article: ¿Quién es Catherine Connolly, la nueva presidenta de Irlanda? Izquierda independiente y sello pro-Palestina
In a significant political shift, Catherine Connolly has been elected as the new president of Ireland, signaling a change in the country’s leadership and its international policy direction.
Connolly, running as an independent leftist candidate with a pro-Palestinian agenda, received over 63% of the votes, defeating her center-right opponent, former minister Heather Humphreys.
«I will be a president who listens, reflects, and speaks when necessary,» said the 68-year-old Connolly after the election results were announced.
“Together we can forge a new republic that values everyone,” affirmed the new president, who succeeds poet and former minister Michael D. Higgins at the end of his second term.
Generational and Ideological Change in Ireland
Her election has been described as a strong indication of public discontent with the political status quo, as voters chose to support a candidate who breaks away from traditional foreign policy approaches, challenging the country’s controversial military alliances and reinstating social justice at the forefront of national discourse.
Her presidency also signifies a generational and ideological shift. Connolly will be Ireland’s tenth president and the third woman to hold the position. Her campaign received backing from left-leaning parties such as Sinn Féin, the Labour Party, and the Social Democrats.
Connolly began her political journey in 1999 when she was elected to the Galway City Council with the Labour Party. Five years later, she became the city’s mayor and in 2007, she left the party to continue her career as an independent.
Critique of Israel’s Genocide Against the Palestinian People
Throughout her career, she has been known for her criticisms of NATO and her stance on the Gaza conflict, denouncing what she describes as genocide perpetrated by Israel against the Palestinian people.
During her presidential campaign, she even referred to the Israeli regime as a «terrorist state.»
“If we cannot recognize that Israel is a terrorist state in this Dáil, we are in serious trouble,” she declared in a video posted in June on her campaign’s Facebook page, referring to the lower house of the Irish Parliament.
Later, at an event in September, she linked Ireland’s history of colonization to her critiques of foreign powers that aim to dictate to a «sovereign people» how they should govern themselves, referring to Palestine.
“I come from Ireland, a country with a history of colonization, and it would be very prudent to refrain from telling a sovereign people how to run their country. The Palestinians must decide democratically who they want to govern them,” she asserted, as reported by HispanTV.
Connolly has also stated that the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (HAMAS), which leads the struggle for liberation against the Zionist colonial regime, is «part of the fabric of the Palestinian people.»
In various interviews, she recalled that HAMAS was elected democratically in 2006 before Israel imposed a criminal blockade on the Gaza Strip.
“They are part of Palestinian civil society,” she explained, arguing that the media and other institutions rely on daily casualty figures provided by HAMAS, as the movement controls public institutions like the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Connolly is known for her sharp criticisms of Israel, addressing both the genocidal crimes committed in Gaza and its military aggressions in other regions of the Middle East, including an offensive against the Islamic Republic of Iran last June that resulted in over a thousand deaths, including military commanders and nuclear scientists.
According to HispanTV, her statements and denunciations of the violence perpetrated by the Zionist regime were hallmarks of her campaign.
«Her strong defense of Palestine and commitment to social justice resonated strongly with young voters, increasingly invested in global human rights,» highlighted the cited media source.
Moreover, Connolly pledged that once in office, she would travel to Palestine to express her support for the population personally.
