On, Friday 24 October 2025, Ireland will go to the polls to elect our next President. Anyone who is an Irish citizen aged 18 or over and who is registered to vote and living in the Republic of Ireland will be able to have their say.

What does the President do?

The Presidency is mostly a symbolic position, which acts as the official face of Ireland to the world. Generally, the President is there to represent the people of Ireland and is independent of ordinary politics. Each President serves a seven-year-term, which can be extended to fourteen years if the current President is re-elected.

The President formally appoints Ministers, judges and ambassadors on the advice of the Government. The President also appoints seven members of the Council of State, which advises the President on the use of their reserve powers.

Reserve powers

However, the President does have some important powers, known as “reserve powers”, which they are expected to use only rarely.

For instance, the President signs all bills passed by the Government to turn them into law. However, if the President thinks that a suggested law might go against the Constitution, they can ask the Supreme Court to examine it and, if it’s found to be unconstitutional, strike it down.

If the Taoiseach wants to call a General Election, they must first travel to Áras an Uachtaráin (the President’s home in Phoenix Park, Dublin) to ask the President’s permission.

Although the President is usually required to agree, they can refuse the request if the Taoiseach does not have the support of a majority of TDs. In that case, the Taoiseach must resign and a new Government will be appointed without an election. This power is an important one, but has not yet been used by any President.

Who gets to run for President?

There are three ways a person can run for President, so long as they are an Irish citizen over the age of 35. You do not have to be born in Ireland to run for President.

Local council nomination

You need the support of at least four county or city councils to run in the election. In 2025, no one was successful in gaining a nomination through this method.

Nomination by TDs and Senators

A second route for potential candidates is to be nominated by at least 20 members of either the Dáil or Seanad. Historically, this has been the most common route for presidential candidates.

Presidential self-nomination

Finally, a sitting or former President who has only served one term is able to nominate themselves to run again.

Irish Presidential Elections 2025

There are two candidates running in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential elections. A third candidate, Jim Gavin, dropped out of the election on 05 October. He dropped out after nominations had closed. This means his name will still appear on the ballot paper. Votes for him will still be counted, and can be distributed to the other candidates due to Ireland’s voting system.

Catherine Connolly

Catherine Connolly is an independent TD from Galway West. She was first elected as a TD in 2016 and was re-elected in 2020 and 2024. In the 2020 election, she was also elected as Leas Ceann Comhairle (deputy chairperson) of the Dáil.

Her presidential bid is being supported by a number of Irish political parties, including:

• Social Democrats
• Labour
• People Before Profit-Solidarity
• The Green Party
• Sinn Féin

Heather Humphreys

Heather Humphreys is an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as a TD for the Cavan-Monaghan constituency from 2011 to 2024. She held various ministerial positions during her career, including Minister for Social Protection from 2020-2025. She became Fine Gael’s presidential nominee after Mairead McGuinness, the party’s initial nominee, withdrew from the race for health reasons.

Humphreys was appointed deputy leader of Fine Gael in April 2024, before announcing in October of that year that she would not be contested future Dáil elections.