Who is Ireland’s new president?

The left-wing independent candidate, 68, a self-proclaimed "underdog", has referred to herself as a representative of a "movement" and a "voice for peace" and "unity".

Despite being an independent, Ms Connolly has united the majority of left-wing parties, including the largest opposition member Sinn Fein, which opted not to put forward a candidate of its own in the election, along with the Social Democrats and Labour.

Her election comes barely a year after Sinn Fein's bid to break the governing Fianna Fail and Fine Gael parties' century-long grip on power fell short.

Ms Connolly was a Labour councillor for 17 years, spending a term as Galway mayor until 2005.

She left the Labour party in 2007, and, after an unsuccessful campaign in 2011, was elected as an independent Teachta Dala (TD) - the equivalent of an MP - in 2016.

She became the first female deputy chairperson of the lower house of the Irish parliament in 2020.

Her election comes at a tumultuous time in the country's capital, where daily riots have been taking place following an alleged sexual assault involving a 10-year-old girl outside a hotel on Monday.