Mary McAleese

Mary Mcalese is the current President of the Irish Republic. She was born in Belfast. She is a qualified lawyer and worked in the state broadcast company RTE in the 1980s. She was nominated to run for the presidency by [[Fianna Fail] in 1997. During the campaign she was criticised heavily by Eoghan Harris because of her Northern Irish nationalist background. Harris said she would prove to be a "tribal timebomb".

She won the election and promised to "build bridges" with Northern Irish Unionists. Her efforts have been cradited with helping to achieve peace in Northern Ireland.