The leader of Fianna Fail has been re-elected for a second term after the chaos in the Irish parliament subsided.
Micheal Martin has been elected for a second term as prime minister of the Republic of Ireland.
MPs voted on Thursday 95 to 76 in favor of appointing a Fianna Fail leader.
Martin will lead a coalition government made up of the two main centre-right parties, in addition to independent lawmakers.
His appointment was delayed by one day after chaos broke out in parliament for the first time on Wednesday, as parliament was suspended following opposition protests over the speaking rights of independent lawyers who support the incoming coalition. The tussle over speech rights was cut short in the talks overnight.
The coalition is the second in a row between historic rivals Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, who between them have led every government since 1937. The independent ministers will step into the shoes of the small coalition party Green Party, which lost many seats. in last November’s election.
Martin, 64, was prime minister from 2020 to 2022 before handing the post to Fine Gael for the second half of the term. Under the coalition agreement, outgoing Prime Minister Simon Harris is expected to return as Prime Minister in 2027.
In the meantime, Harris will replace Martin as deputy prime minister and possibly take over as foreign minister. Elsewhere, Fine Gael’s Paschal Donohoe – chairman of the group of eurozone finance ministers – is expected to return as finance minister.
Ireland is facing a recession in the return of US President Donald Trump, whose promise to cut corporate taxes threatens the country’s export-oriented economy.
“For us today, the job is to protect Ireland’s energy in a time of real threat, while addressing the critical needs of the community. By any reasonable measure, this is a challenging time in the history of the world,” a dejected Martin told parliament after his election.
He said the key to protecting and revitalizing Ireland’s economic model would be to strengthen “three key relationships” with Europe, the US and the United Kingdom.
“We are naive about the realities of change [in the US]but equally the Irish-American relationship is mutually beneficial and will continue to grow stronger no matter what.”
The coalition has promised to use the tax windfall from the US multinational group to further boost public sector investment and cut taxes, while also building an Irish sovereign wealth fund.
Martin, who was first elected to parliament 36 years ago, was a senior member of the Fianna Fail government that signed up for a European Union-IMF bailout in 2010, which led to an unprecedented 2011 election collapse shortly after taking over as leader.
The former history teacher, who has held portfolios including health, business and education, has led a rapid recovery in the party’s fortunes to return Fianna Fail to power after nine years.
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