Ireland’s presidential election at the end of last month resulted in a decisive victory for the left-wing candidate Catherine Connolly. Connolly won more votes and received a bigger percentage than any previous candidate for the presidency in the history of the state. This came straight after a period when it looked as if the Irish left was in retreat and an emerging far-right movement was making the political running.

The local, European, and general elections held in 2024 were not good for the Irish left parties. While there were some success stories, the bigger picture was that the traditional conservative parties, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, held on to power and formed the most right-wing government of recent times. They did this by aligning with the populist right to scapegoat migrants in a classic divide-and-rule strategy.

Those elections led to renewed discussion about left unity, and whether the broad left could come together to defeat not only the government but also the growing threat of the far right. Among parties and independents on the Left, conversations began about running a joint candidate for the Irish presidency in this year’s election, with many names being speculated on.

Yet one week out from the summer recess of the Dáil, these discussions looked to be dragging on, with parties undergoing their own internal processes. There was a real fear that no decision would be made until September — too late to mount a serious challenge.

That was when Connolly stepped forward, clearly indicating her willingness to stand. People Before Profit, the Social Democrats, and a number of independent left figures quickly agreed she would be the strongest candidate — a principled and independent voice who could unite the broad left around a vision of a republic that stands for peace, equality, and care. Those parties informed others that they were backing her, hoping the rest of the Left would follow.

Launching a Movement

From the beginning, we believed we could win, but only if we built a movement to do it. Presidential elections in Ireland are deeply personalized contests, dominated by negativity, media narratives, and the resources of big parties. We knew we could not match the campaign budgets of Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael, nor rely on Irish newspapers to get Connolly’s message of hope out. Google and Meta were not allowing online political advertising either, but we believed that organizing and organic social media would get the job done, not advertising and spin.

I joined the campaign the Friday before the public announcement. My first task was to quickly build a campaign website. We decided to use Solidarity Tech, the same platform used by Zohran Mamdani’s successful mayoral campaign in New York, because it was built for one purpose: organizing people, not just broadcasting to them. That focus on organizing defined everything that came after.

Launch day on July 16 captured the contrast that would come to define the campaign. On one side, you had the cynicism and hostility of the establishment: one senior journalist from the conservative Irish Independent tried to stir up a story by claiming that “controversial” former MEPs Clare Daly and Mick Wallace were drinking in a nearby bar and asking whether Connolly was meeting them.

The implication of the loaded question was that there was some kind of secret puppet master behind the campaign. There was one problem with this narrative: the story was completely false. These supposed “bogeymen” weren’t even in Dublin at the time! There was no man behind the curtain.

On the other side stood Connolly herself: a calm, clear, and principled figure. She spoke about neutrality, peace, and the welfare of the people — and about the campaign as a movement, not just a bid for office. That day, over 2,000 people volunteered and donated more than €12,000.

While these figures may seem small by international standards, Ireland’s campaign financing rules mean that most candidates rely almost entirely on preexisting funds from their party or their personal resources. In one day, we had raised almost three times what the Sinn Féin candidate Martin McGuinness managed to raise in grassroots donations for the 2011 election and surpassed the total declared donations of high-profile past independent candidates.

The media didn’t see it yet, but it was already obvious: this was bigger than a campaign. It was a movement being born.

Organizing the Campaign

To turn that energy into power, we had to organize like never before. We took lessons from social movements, trade unions, and previous campaigns like those of Bernie Sanders in the United States and Jeremy Corbyn in Britain. When your biggest resource is people, organizing is your most important task.

We immediately launched a volunteer survey to understand who was joining, what skills they had, and how they wanted to help. We began phone banking within days, not to fundraise or deliver a script, but to talk to people, connect with them, and invite them to our first online rally. In that first week, we had more than a hundred callers trained, calling more than a thousand supporters, and organizing a major online rally.

The calls, surveys, and coordinating meetings of the campaigns were not just about logistics — they were about relationships. Each conversation deepened a network of solidarity. Volunteers began linking up locally, forming groups in every constituency. We started with a single WhatsApp community, which quickly hit the 2,000-member limit, so we had to launch regional communities and dozens of local chats, which became the living, beating heart of the campaign.

By August, our focus was on building teams and preparing for the next phase. Connolly was traveling nonstop across the country. The Labour Party’s endorsement demonstrated to the media the growing momentum of the campaign, and new affinity groups like Students for Connolly, Gaeilgeoirí ar son Connolly (Irish Speakers for Connolly), and Artists for Connolly helped us develop more campaigners with their own areas of activity.

Stepping Up

September marked the next stage. Local groups began holding street stalls, pub quizzes, and gigs. We ran canvassing trainings and started mapping out our voter outreach plans. The gaeilgeoirí and student groups held their public launches. Trade union endorsements began to roll in, the fruit of careful relationship-building.

Our “Sponsor a Poster” appeal triggered another wave of small donations. This was a people-powered campaign in every sense, one that was funded, staffed, and propelled by ordinary supporters. Our central team also grew rapidly. We rented an office, and volunteers took over responsibility for social media, fundraising, regional work, press, political liaison, and more.

The campaign’s third chapter began with a major national rally in September, which also coincided with the launch of our canvassing drive. The website’s canvassing hub listed events across the country, connecting supporters to their nearest local effort. The endorsement of Connolly’s campaign by Sinn Féin days before this was a welcome boost, bringing together the entirety of the Left and rebutting the skepticism expressed by some in the media about whether such unity was possible.

Meanwhile, our social media operation hit full stride. A handful of viral moments and well-produced videos cut through the noise, but more importantly, our channels consistently showcased the enthusiasm and spread of the campaign. More affinity groups and specific events were organized by housing campaigners and by disabled people and carers, with each group producing social media content and messaging to reach their specific community.

The first televised debate was a turning point. Catherine outshone the other candidates, coming across as thoughtful, principled, and authentic. For many voters who had never seen her before, this was their introduction, and it changed the dynamic of the race. Podcast appearances in September also allowed her to go deeper by explaining her ideas in her own words, free from the shallow sound bites of “legacy” media.

In October, we launched a canvassing mobilization team, which focused on bringing people out to knock on doors. We launched Super Saturdays: nationwide action days that brought out thousands of volunteers. The energy was electric. In an age of isolation and doomscrolling, coming together with your neighbors to fight for something bigger than yourself was transformative. By the end, over 8,000 people had taken part in some way.

The final week was all about Get Out the Vote (GOTV). Youth for Connolly organized a major GOTV gig and mass canvass, and we held our final major rally, this time in Galway. A final leaflet, focused on encouraging people to vote, went into people’s homes across the country. Volunteers covered every corner, reminding people to vote, offering lifts, and creating a sense of shared purpose that carried right through election day.

Building on the Campaign

There are many lessons from the Connolly campaign, but one stands out above all: the need for unity and sustained organizing. That’s why many of us who worked on the campaign have launched KeepLeft.ie, a network of activists from across the Left, committed to building solidarity and campaigning together to achieve Connolly’s vision of a new republic and a left government that can deliver that.

The Connolly campaign succeeded because it tapped into living movements, relying on activists who had developed through campaigns of students, tenants, women, LGBTQ+ people, those with disabilities, and especially the campaigns around Palestine and Irish neutrality. The Left must now carry those fights forward: demanding the Occupied Territories Bill be implemented, opposing attacks on Ireland’s triple lock, and pushing for a referendum to protect neutrality.

But we must also keep focusing on the economic front, mobilizing around housing, rents, and the cost of living. The far right feeds on despair and division. We have to build rooted movements in the very communities where those forces are trying to take hold, working alongside groups like the Community Action Tenants Union and trade union branches to give people a real alternative.

We also need to prepare politically. Instead of seeking to cut a deal with Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael, we need left parties and independents to agree on a “Vote Left, Transfer Left” pact in the next general election. This could become the basis for a mass, hopeful campaign, rallying support not just against Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, but for a different Ireland.

Another important lesson from the campaign is that culture matters too. Music, art, humor, and creativity were vital in the Connolly campaign, generating a sense of community and common purpose.

The left-wing wave of the 2010s was inspiring, but many wondered how it could happen again in today’s darker media landscape, after Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter, the imposition of algorithmic chokeholds, and the rise of a hardened far right. Yet the victories of candidates like Connolly and Mamdani show that it is still possible. The path is harder, but it’s still there to be followed.

Social media helps. Podcasts help. But none of it works without networks of solidarity and communities of campaigners who can turn moments into movements. Winning an election is only the beginning. To truly challenge the rule of the billionaire class, we need a movement that is organized, politicized, and rooted in every community, workplace, and union.