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Catherine Connolly Poised to Win Irish Presidency Despite Deepfake Scandal
Ireland votes for a new president as left-wing independent Catherine Connolly leads polls despite a deepfake video scandal. Her pro-Palestine stance and unity call win youth support.
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by Muhammad Hashir
2025-10-24
Catherine Connolly Poised to Win Irish Presidency Despite Deepfake Scandal

Ireland went to the polls on Friday to elect a new president, with left-wing independent Catherine Connolly emerging as the frontrunner despite her campaign being hit by a deepfake video falsely showing her withdrawing from the race.

Voting ended at 10 p.m. (21:00 GMT), with results expected by Saturday evening. Connolly faces off against Heather Humphreys of the centre-right Fine Gael party for the largely ceremonial presidency, which gained heightened significance during the tenure of outgoing President Michael D. Higgins.

Connolly, 68, a barrister and parliamentarian since 2016, has drawn strong support from young voters and left-leaning groups, who praise her for declaring Irish reunification with Northern Ireland a “foregone conclusion”, her staunch pro-Palestine stance, and her criticism of the EU’s increasing militarisation. Her campaign has also benefited from a growing Irish language revival, with artists and cultural figures openly backing her.

Meanwhile, Heather Humphreys, 64, a veteran Fine Gael politician who has served in multiple cabinet roles, is campaigning on a pro-business and pro-European Union platform. She has highlighted her Presbyterian background and personal ties to Protestant communities in Northern Ireland, pledging to “build bridges” across the island.

A third candidate, Jim Gavin of Fianna Fáil, remains on the ballot despite resigning earlier this month over a rent scandal — a move that has frustrated some voters over the limited choice in the race.

🧠 Deepfake Controversy

Connolly’s campaign faced turbulence earlier this week when a deepfake video surfaced online, fabricated to look like an RTÉ News broadcast, in which an AI-generated Connolly announced her withdrawal from the election. The clip spread rapidly across social media before being debunked by fact-checkers and condemned by Irish officials as “a dangerous manipulation of democracy.”

Despite the incident, Connolly remains ahead in opinion polls, with analysts saying the scandal may have bolstered public sympathy for her and highlighted the dangers of AI disinformation in democratic elections.

🌍 Global Context

Connolly’s pro-Palestine rhetoric echoes Ireland’s historic foreign policy stance, as Dublin — alongside Madrid — has been among the European Union’s strongest critics of Israel’s actions in Gaza. Outgoing President Michael D. Higgins also courted controversy by denouncing accusations of anti-Semitism against pro-Palestine voices as “slander against Ireland.”

The Irish presidency holds no direct legislative power, but Higgins expanded the role’s visibility through his outspoken views on international issues, social equality, and peacebuilding.

If Connolly wins, she would become Ireland’s first female president from the political left and a symbol of the country’s generational and ideological shift toward progressive causes.
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IrishPolitics

Deepfake

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