In Ireland, for the first time in history, a woman – 53-year-old Verona Murphy – took the post of Speaker of the Parliament. She previously worked as a truck driver and chaired the Irish Road Transport Association. About this informs Political.
The speaker was elected by secret ballot. Four candidates applied for this position. Murphy received 89 votes, ahead of her nearest rival who received 67 votes.
Verona Murphy already ran for parliament in 2019, but then her campaign suffered a setback due to controversial statements about migrants. She argued that some asylum seekers arriving in Ireland needed to be “deprogrammed” because they could have been influenced by Islamic State.
Murphy became the first woman to serve as Speaker of Parliament, breaking a tradition that lasted more than a century. Until now, since the first meeting of the parliament in 1919, this position has been held exclusively by men – 20 times in a row.
