As Limerick voters prepare for the polls to pick the next Uachtarán na hÉireann, the candidates had their first presidential debate Limerick Voice’s Political Correspondent Siobhan Rogan shares her views on the winners and losers of the first televised presidential debate. Chaired by Virgin Media host Kieran Cuddihy, the debate focused on Ireland’s position on the Gaza conflict, the significance of the national flag, immigration policy, and the future of the country’s defence forces.
Fine Gael’s Heather Humphreys, the most politically experienced of the three candidates, struggled to make her presence felt. While she opened by promising “honesty, compassion and service,” she was frequently interrupted and overshadowed by her rivals. It seemed at times the debate was between Catherine Connolly and Fianna Fail’s candidate Jim Gavin, while Humphreys was happy to wait to be called on.
It will be no surprise if Humphreys gets called out on her comments about the Occupied Territories Bill, especially with her party leader being the person to bring it to the Oireachtas. She commented “Well, in fairness, is it going to make any difference in what’s happening in Israel?”
Much of her time was spent defending her government’s record, leaving little room for fresh ideas. The attacks on her decade long Cabinet career, particularly from Connolly, meant she had to spend more time defending her government’s past choices rather than showing voters her personal opinions and views.
Jim Gavin showed his inexperience in politics and debate through his rehearsed answers and messy arguments. His clearest stance came on immigration, where he argued that migrants are “essential to the economy – if they hold permits”, namely citing hospital staff and nurses. He called for a “robust but fair” immigration policy. He said the immigration policy in Ireland is unsustainable the way it is now and needs to be tackled.
He seemed confident to challenge Connolly on her views, mainly being her stance on opposing the triple lock- the triple lock being Ireland sending defence forces overseas for peacekeeping missions. Gavin’s performance shows he has some work to do to convince voters to make him Ireland’s next president.
It was clear at times he struggled with answering pointed questions, such as when Connolly asked him if he believed the Israel Defence Force had reached their military targets – this referencing Gavin’s past comments on the topic. He didn’t give a direct answer but commented on Israel committing war crimes.
Catherine Connolly made her debate experience apparent. She was composed, comfortable and quick to challenge her opponents, Cuddihy, and the Government. When pressed on her previous comments comparing certain governmental policies to those of the 1930s, mentioning Germany, she clarified that she was criticizing countries who “use their military-industrial complexes to boost their economies”. Connolly was surprisingly the only candidate to mention sustainability in her debate, despite it being one of the most discussed issues internationally.
Foreign policy proved the sharpest dividing line. While Gaza and Ukraine dominated much of the discussion, the deeper split was over neutrality and Ireland’s relationships with the European Union and the United States. Connolly spoke heavily about her views against closer alignment.
Many people were underwhelmed by the debate, saying it seemed more like a ‘polite chat’, or a regular episode of the Tonight Show.
By the end, there was not a clear winner of the debate. However, Catherine Connolly seems to be the favoured candidate, especially by young voters.
Voting for the election takes place Friday 24th October between 7am and 10pm.
