Fianna Fáil’s Jim Gavin withdraws from Presidential Election

Updated / Sunday, 5 Oct 2025 23:36

Fianna Fáil’s candidate Jim Gavin has announced he is withdrawing from the Presidential Election “with immediate effect”.

In a statement, he said recent days gave him “cause to reflect”.

Mr Gavin said: “I made a mistake that was not in keeping with my character and the standards I set myself. I am now taking steps to address the matter.

“I have also thought long and hard about the potential impact of the ongoing campaign on the wellbeing of my family and friends.

“Taking all these considerations on board, I have decided to withdraw from the presidential election contest with immediate effect and return to the arms of my family.”

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he fully understands Mr Gavin’s decision and believes “it is the correct one”.

Fianna Fáil’s leader said: “Jim has accepted that he made an error in relation to an issue that has arisen in recent days.

“He himself has said the office of Uachtarán na hÉireann is the highest in the land and the pinnacle of public service.

“He is clear that he does not want to bring controversy onto this office.

“This has been a very difficult decision for Jim given his commitment to public service.”

Earlier, Mr Gavin said he was looking into reports he owes a former tenant €3,300, but that he did not have “all the information” about the matter.

It relates to a dispute with a former tenant around the time his own family came into financial difficulty, as reported by the Irish Independent yesterday.

It was reported that an apartment owned by Mr Gavin in the north inner city was occupied by a couple between 2007 to 2009. When they left, their rent payment by standing order was still being paid into Mr Gavin’s account due to a banking error, despite the tenant having cancelled the standing order.

The former tenant told the newspaper that he wrote to Mr Gavin that €3,300 in total was paid to him in error, asking him to acknowledge the mistake made by the tenant and to refund him.

However, the tenant claimed that the refund was never paid to him, despite numerous attempts to contact Mr Gavin, as per the report.

Speaking during RTÉ’s live Presidential Election debate today, Mr Gavin said: “That matter was over 16 years ago. It was a very stressful time for myself and my family.

“Like a lot of families and couples, we came into financial difficulty at that time.”

Mr Gavin said: “If it happened, I’m very sorry that it happened. I’m looking into it and I will deal with it with urgency.”

Speaking after the debate, Mr Gavin said he is still “gathering the data” on the incident, saying it was “part of my life that I left behind”.

The Fianna Fáil candidate said his family only own one property now, which is their home.

He said that he did not register the rented property with the Residential Tenancies Board, but added that “it was a new law at the time” and “the majority of people didn’t register [properties] at the time”.

He said he has declared all his income.