| Variations of Name | Michael Daniel Higgins; Mícheál Dónal Ó hUigínn |
| Biography | Michael Daniel Higgins is an Irish politician who has served as the President of Ireland since November 2011.
Higgins is a politician, poet, sociologist, and broadcaster. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway West constituency and was Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht from 1993 to 1997. He was the President of the Labour Party from 2003 until 2011, when he resigned following his election as President of Ireland.
He has used his time in office to address issues concerning justice, social equality, social inclusion, anti-sectarianism, anti-racism and reconciliation. He made the first state visit by an Irish President to the United Kingdom in April 2014.
Higgins ran for a second term as President of Ireland in 2018 and was re-elected in a landslide victory. Higgins attained the largest personal mandate in the history of the Republic of Ireland, with 822,566 first preference votes. Higgins' second presidential inauguration took place on 11 November 2018. |