Ireland's Parliament has elected Simon Harris as the country's youngest ever Prime Minister, replacing Leo Varadkar following his sudden resignation last month.
On Tuesday, Harris' nomination was confirmed by a vote of 88-69, drawing cheers from MPs after securing the support of some independents, coalition partners Fianna Fail and the Green Party.
The 37-year-old former health and higher education minister is best known for helping steer Ireland's initial response to the coronavirus pandemic, but last month, days after Mr Varadkar's shock, the moderate He was elected unopposed as the new leader of the right-wing Fine Gael Party. Exit.
“I accept this appointment as headmaster.” [prime minister]'' Harris said. “I promise to do everything in my power to live up to the trust you have placed in me.”
Harris paid tribute to the new government's coalition partners who supported her candidacy, saying she would lead “in a spirit of unity, cooperation and mutual respect.”
Harris has vowed to reinvigorate and “reset” the party, telling a weekend caucus meeting that she intends to return it to its “core values” of promoting business, agriculture and law and order.
I am deeply honored to be the Taoiseach of this great country today.
I will be a Taoist for all people, a Taoist who strives every day to realize the hopes, dreams, and aspirations of all people.
To read my full speech: https://t.co/iZs3RDlQ0M https://t.co/4kmgxJR6kj
— Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) April 9, 2024
Harris' election as prime minister caps a meteoric political rise. At the age of 16 he joined the Gaelic youth branch and quickly rose through the ranks.
He was a county councilor at the age of 22 and was elected to the council in 2011 at the age of 24. At the time, he was the youngest member of Parliament and was nicknamed 'The Baby of the Dail'.
He was appointed Minister of Health in 2016 at just 29 years old, and Minister of Higher Education in 2020.
reshuffle
As Ireland's new leader, Harris faces a daunting list of tasks, including tackling the housing and homelessness crisis and criticizing the government's policies towards asylum seekers.
One of his first tasks will be to select the Cabinet. He is expected to announce a shake-up of his Fine Gael team, which holds seven of the 18 cabinet seats, on Tuesday.
Harris said last week that some candidates would be “understandably happy,” while others would “feel a personal disappointment.”
He added: “I will do my best to use my best judgment in the mission given to me by this party to assemble the best possible Cabinet.”
When she was elected last month, Harris told party members that she would repay their trust by “working responsibly, humbly and with dignity every day, with blood, sweat and tears.”
He also said he would pursue a “more deliberate and sustainable” immigration policy and “combat the dangers of populism” in response to rising tensions over the issue.
Harris, who has a reputation for being a skilled communicator, is also trying to quickly revitalize her beleaguered party, which is lagging in the polls, with a key election looming.
Ireland will vote in local and European Parliament polls on June 7, but the next general election must be held by March 2025.
In the last general election in 2020, Fine Gael fell far short of left-wing nationalist Sinn Féin, which secured the largest share of votes, and finished in third place.
Opinion polls over the past three years have shown Sinn Féin, which supports union with the British state of Northern Ireland, as the leading candidate to form the next government.
Before Harris, Varadkar was the country's youngest leader, first elected at the age of 38, and Ireland's first openly gay prime minister. His mother is Irish and his father is Indian, making this Varadkar Ireland's first interracial marriage.
Mr Varadkar, 45, said in March it was the right time to step down. “The reasons for my resignation now are both personal and political, but primarily political,” he said, without elaborating.
