Presidential election: where the candidates went wrong in Monday's debate

Oct 1, 2025

Lorcan Nyhan, head of training at the Communications Clinic, analyzes the recent Irish presidential debate. He discusses how the candidates' scripted performances lacked the energy needed to engage viewers. Lorcan praises Catherine Connolly for her clarity and confidence while critiquing Jim Gavin's inexperience and Heather Humphreys' cautious approach. He emphasizes the importance of authenticity, tailored messaging, and the drawbacks of the debate's format, which diminished interaction and excitement among the candidates.

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INSIGHT

Find Each Candidate's Authentic Peak

There is no one perfect debate style; the goal is the candidate's perfect, polished, authentic version.
Trainers should free candidates to be themselves and then hone that consistent performance.

ADVICE

Edit Candidates, Don't Script Them

Avoid feeding candidates lines to memorise; instead edit and refine their own language and rhythm.
Work drafts until their authentic voice emerges and then rehearse that version consistently.

INSIGHT

Spark Matters More Than Polishing

The debate lacked substance and "spark", making it unlikely to shift many votes.
Without memorable content, debates rarely change voter behaviour significantly.

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On Monday evening, the three candidates for the Irish presidency gathered together for their first live debate on Virgin Media Television. But, was it a really a debate?

Rather than standing, Catherine Connolly, Heather Humphreys and Jim Gavin sat around a table and delivered a series of lines and scripts for over an hour. To many, it just appeared to be a longer version of Virgin’s regular weeknight politics show.

The conversation was largely polite, restrained and non-combative and ultimately made for quite dull TV.

How did the three presidential candidates fare in the live TV studio setting and who came out on top?

And what do the Irish presidential candidates need to change about their communication style to bring some spark to the race for the Áras and inspire us, the public, to cast our vote in their favour?

Today, on In The News, what does it take to win a presidential debate?

Lorcan Nyhan, head of training at the Communications Clinic who has previously worked with Irish politicians on presentation and communication, breaks down what the candidates need to change about their debating style to bring more energy and public interest to the campaign for president.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Declan Conlon and Andrew McNair.

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