President of Ireland
The President of Ireland (Irish: Uachtarán na hÉireann OOk-te-rawn na HAir-un ) is the head of state of Ireland. It is mostly ceremonial and elections are held every seven years, a person can be elected for up to two terms. The current President of Ireland is Catherine Connolly.
| President of Ireland | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Style | President (Uachtarán) or Your Excellency (A Shoilse) |
| Residence | Áras an Uachtaráin |
| Term length | Seven years, renewable once |
| Inaugural holder | Douglas Hyde |
| Formation | 25 June 1938 |
| Salary | €250,000 per annum [1] |
| Website | www |
Duties
- Appoints the government: The President formally appoints the Taoiseach (head of government) and other ministers, and accepts their resignations.
- Signs bills into law: The President cannot veto a bill that the Dáil and the Seanad have adopted.
- Power of pardon: The President, on the advice of the Government, has "the right of pardon and the power to commute or remit punishment".[2]
- The President is ex officio President of the Irish Red Cross Society.[3]
- The President appoints, on the advice of the Government, the Senior Professors and chairman of the council of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies;[4]
List of presidents of Ireland
The functions of the President were exercised by the Presidential Commission from the coming into force of the Constitution on 29 December 1937 until the election of Douglas Hyde in 1938, and during the vacancies of 1974, 1976, and 1997.
| No. | Portrait | Name (birth–death) |
Previous service | Term of office | Nominated by | Election | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||||||
| 1 | Douglas Hyde (1860–1949) |
Senator (1922–1925, 1938) |
25 June 1938 | 24 June 1945 | 7 years | Fianna Fáil | 1938 | ||
| Fine Gael | |||||||||
| 2 | Seán T. O'Kelly (1882–1966) |
Tánaiste (1932–1945) |
25 June 1945 | 24 June 1959 | 14 years | Fianna Fáil | 1945 | ||
| Himself | 1952 | ||||||||
| 3 | Éamon de Valera (1882–1975) |
Taoiseach (1932–1948, 1951–1954, 1957–1959) |
25 June 1959 | 24 June 1973 | 14 years | Fianna Fáil | 1959 | ||
| Himself | 1966 | ||||||||
| 4 | Erskine Hamilton Childers (1905–1974) |
Tánaiste (1969–1973) |
25 June 1973 | 17 November 1974 | 1 year, 145 days | Fianna Fáil | 1973 | ||
| 5 | Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh[a] (1911–1978) |
Chief Justice of Ireland (1961–1973) |
19 December 1974 | 22 October 1976 | 1 year, 308 days | All-party nomination | 1974 | ||
| 6 | Patrick Hillery (1923–2008) |
European Commissioner for Social Affairs (1973–1976) |
3 December 1976 | 2 December 1990 | 14 years | Fianna Fáil | 1976 | ||
| Himself | 1983 | ||||||||
| 7 | Mary Robinson (born 1944) |
Senator (1969–1989) |
3 December 1990 | 12 September 1997 | 6 years, 283 days | Labour | 1990 | ||
| Workers' Party | |||||||||
| 8 | Mary McAleese (born 1951) |
Reid Professor of Criminal law, Criminology and Penology at Trinity College Dublin |
11 November 1997 | 10 November 2011 | 14 years | Fianna Fáil | 1997 | ||
| Progressive Democrats | |||||||||
| Herself | 2004 | ||||||||
| 9 | Michael D. Higgins (born 1941) |
Minister for Arts, Culture and Gaeltacht (1993–1997) |
11 November 2011 | 10 November 2025 | 14 years | Labour | 2011 | ||
| Himself | 2018 | ||||||||
| 10 | Catherine Connolly (born 1957) |
Leas-Cheann Comhairle (2020–2024) |
11 November 2025 | Incumbent | 213 days | Sinn Fein | 2025 | ||
| Social Democrats | |||||||||
| Labour | |||||||||
| PBP–Solidarity | |||||||||
| Green Party | |||||||||
| 100% Redress | |||||||||
| Independents | |||||||||
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President Of Ireland Media
President Mary Robinson (1990–1997) is credited with "revolutionising" the role of the president
President Mary McAleese greets US President Barack Obama at Áras an Uachtaráin
President Michael D. Higgins with the Chief Justice and Presidents of the Supreme Courts of Ireland
The President has the power to refer a bill, either in whole or in part, to the Supreme Court
Áras an Uachtaráin is the official residence of the president.
The president's wreath (in green) laid at Ireland's Remembrance Day ceremonies in St. Patrick's Cathedral in 2005. Presidents have attended the ceremony since the 1990s.
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Notes
References
- ↑ "Higher or lower: how does Michael D's new salary compare to other heads of state?". TheJournal.ie. 10 November 2011. http://www.thejournal.ie/higher-or-lower-how-does-michael-ds-new-salary-compare-to-other-heads-of-state-266916-Oct2011/.
- ↑ Constitution of Ireland: Article 13.6
- ↑ Red Cross Act, 1944 Irish Statute Book
- ↑ Institute For Advanced Studies Act, 1940. Retrieved 2018-06-01.
- ↑ Lentz, Harris M.. Heads of States and Governments Since 1945 (2014). Hoboken, NJ: Taylor and Francis. p. 421. ISBN 978-1-134-26490-2.
