Historically, the Irish Presidential race has generated less enthusiasm among the electorate than the spectacle surrounding a General Election. However, the upcoming year of 2025 holds the potential to challenge this notion. A significant question arises: Who will emerge as the next President of Ireland?
Who is the President of Ireland?
The formal powers and roles of the President are defined in the Constitution. Many of the capabilities of the President can only be exercised on the recommendation of the Government, but the President has complete constraints in other areas.
The President possesses the following abilities:
- Assignment of the Taoiseach, government members, judges, and other officials.
- Gathering and dissolving the Dáil and convening the Oireachtas.
- Signing legislation into law and referring Bills to the Supreme Court.
- Acting as a representative of the people of Ireland.
- Serving as the Supreme Commander of the Defence Forces.
In the following, we will examine the potential candidates for the presidency:
Bertie Ahern
Bertie Ahern, a prominent Irish politician during the 1990s and early 2000s, played a significant role in achieving industrial peace through social partnership and fostering economic prosperity. His negotiating skills were acknowledged by the late Taoiseach Charles Haughey, who famously referred to him as “the most cunning, the most devious of them all.” Speculation arose when Ahern rejoined Fianna Fáil before Christmas, suggesting that he might run as the party’s candidate for Áras an Uachtaráin.
There have been rumors fueled by former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern himself that he intends to enter the race for the presidency in 2025. Ahern, aged 71, rejoining Fianna Fáil before Christmas has led to speculation about his potential candidacy for Áras an Uachtaráin. In an interview with Newstalk’s Pat Kenny, Ahern did not rule out the possibility of running for the presidency but stated, “The presidency is for another day. I have been on the Council of State for nearly 26 years.”
An Irish Times poll indicates that a majority of people would not vote for Bertie Ahern to become President. The poll suggests that a presidential bid would be challenging for the former Taoiseach, with over half of the respondents (51 percent) expressing that they would “definitely not vote” for him. Additionally, 14 percent indicated that they would “probably not vote for him, but it would depend on the other candidates.
Gerry Adams:
Another who has appreciated an enlargement in coverage over the preceding week is the former Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams. Mr Adams stated in the past, “I have never had any intention, I don’t have any intention and never will have any intention of running for that position (President)”.
Furthermore, with a Sinn Féin majority for the first time in Northern Ireland, alongside the genuine chance of a Sinn Féin election victory in the Republic, the possibility of the party potentially controlling the three main levers of power on the island could lure Mr Adams.
There have been several attempts on Gerry Adams’ life through the years. In 1984, Adams was significantly wounded when he was shot in the neck, shoulder and arm as gunmen punctured his car with about 20 bullets.
Reporters Asked if he had ruled out running for the job when Michael D Higgins stepped down, or any other time, Mr Adams issued a one-word answer. He said: “Yes.” In an interview pursuing the latest Ireland’s Future event in Belfast, the veteran republican said he focused on “engaging” with unionists over the border query.
Adams reputedly became a senior strategist in the IRA, though he consistently rejected any direct involvement in the organization, which is illegal in Northern Ireland and the Republic. Adams was jailed in 1973–76 and 1978 and was later officially charged with membership in the IRA, though he was never condemned. In 1983 Adams was elected as the President of Sinn Féin and a member of the British Parliament, but in keeping with party policy, he declined to take his seat to detour, taking the obligatory oath of loyalty to the British queen. In 2013, when Adams’s brother Liam was sent to prison for having raped and abused his daughter over a prolonged period, Adams’s prestige was damaged by the disclosure that he had waited several years to inform the police of his brother’s actions. Adams’s concerns resumed in 2014 when he was arrested by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) in association with the investigation of the murder in 1972 of Jean McConville, the widowed mother of 10 kidnapped and assassinated by the IRA.
Enda Kenny or Mairead McGuinness
Enda Kenny TD is the most flourishing leader in the history of the Fine Gael Party. During his leadership, Fine Gael has evolved into the most prominent political organization in the State. He was elected Taoiseach on March 9, 2011. He has spelt out his idea of Fine Gael as a party of the progressive centre, concentrating on the rights and responsibilities of all citizens. In another scenario, Mairead McGuinness is hotly tipped to bound from the EU finance hot seat to become the next President of Ireland.
Former President, Michael D. Higgins
The next Irish presidential election is foreseen in 2025 when the term of popular left-wing incumbent Michael D. Higgins expires. Senior officials in Dublin say McGuinness’s public profile as Ireland’s commissioner has put her in a good place for the role.
Michael D. Higgins is standing down after his 14 years on the job. The jockeying for positions among candidates has begun.
What Polls showing us
Recent polls demonstrate that two possible runners may need help, with neither Bertie Ahern nor Gerry Adams would be favoured choices for the Irish presidency, according to recent opinion polls. According to a Sunday Business Post/ Red C poll, 59% of those surveyed said they would vote for neither.
A public question in Ireland investigated allegations of corrupt payments to politicians concerning political decisions. After its findings in 2012, Bertie Ahern quit the party, only rejoining again in 2023. This move has paved the way for a hypothesis to grow about a tilt at the Áras. But the latest poll findings show he would be distant from a shoo-in. This is confirmed by a previous Irish Times/Ipsos poll finds. Only 7 per cent of voters said they would “definitely vote for him”.
Gerry Adams’ name has regularly been mentioned concerning a presidential bid. But while many praise his efforts during the peace negotiations in the 1990s, a presidential campaign would refocus on his past and his relationship with the IRA during the dark years of the Troubles. Adams has always rejected being a member of the Provisional IRA. But journalists, historians and former IRA members have thrown doubt on his insistence. A presidential campaign would undoubtedly see a forensic examination of his past.
