BELFAST: Mary Lou McDonald will succeed Gerry Adams as Sinn Fein leader, the party said on Saturday, completing a generational shift for the Irish nationalist party as it bids to enter government on both sides of the Irish border.
Adams, a pivotal figure in the political life of Ireland for almost 50 years, announced he would step down as leader of the former political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) last November after more than three decades in charge.
McDonald, an English literature graduate from Trinity College Dublin who has been at the forefront of a new breed of Sinn Fein politicians softening the party’s image, was the only Sinn Fein lawmaker to put her name forward for the leadership ahead of a special convention on Feb. 10.
“For us in Sinn Fein in the time ahead, we have to grow our party, not just our mandate but also our capacities. We have to modernize, we have to be fit for purpose, fit for our task,” McDonald said in a speech to party members in Belfast.
“As we enter a new era, we look ahead with confidence as a party that is about being in government here in the north, in government in the south also, working forward all the time for the realization of our ultimate goal of Irish unity.”
Adams, still reviled by some skeptical voters as the face of the IRA during its campaign against British rule in Northern Ireland, hands over to a successor with no direct involvement in the three decades of conflict that came to an end in 1998.
It also means the left-wing party will be led on both sides of the border by women in their 40s after Michelle O’Neill succeeded Martin McGuinness as leader in Northern Ireland shortly before the former IRA commander’s death in March.
Sinn Fein has shared power in Northern Ireland since 2007 and is in negotiations to try to restore the devolved executive there but it has never governed in the south where it has grown to establish itself as the third largest party.
While it trails the center-right Fine Gael and Fianna Fail parties by some distance in opinion polls, recent surveys suggest some voters would be more willing to vote for a party led by McDonald than Adams.
With the big two parties likely to be able to form another minority government at best at elections that could come as soon as this year, McDonald’s leadership could also make Sinn Fein a more palatable coalition partner.
McDonald to succeed Adams as Sinn Fein leader in striking shift
McDonald to succeed Adams as Sinn Fein leader in striking shift
Trump is threatening to block a new bridge between Detroit and Canada from opening
- Trump’s threat comes as the relationship between the US and Canada increasingly sours during the US president’s second term
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to block the opening of a new Canadian-built bridge across the Detroit River, demanding that Canada turn over at least half of the ownership of the bridge and agree to other unspecified demands in his latest salvo over cross-border trade issues.
“We will start negotiations, IMMEDIATELY. With all that we have given them, we should own, perhaps, at least one half of this asset,” Trump said in a lengthy social media post, complaining that the United States would get nothing from the bridge and that Canada did not use US steel to built it.
The Gordie Howe International Bridge, named after a Canadian hockey star who played for the Detroit Red Wings for 25 seasons, had been expected to open in early 2026, according to information on the project’s website. The project was negotiated by former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder — a Republican — and paid for by the Canadian government to help ease congestion over the existing Ambassador Bridge and Detroit-Windsor tunnel. Work has been underway since 2018.
It’s unclear how Trump would seek to block the bridge from being opened, and the White House did not immediately return a request for comment on more details. The Canadian Embassy in Washington also did not immediately return a request for comment.
Trump’s threat comes as the relationship between the US and Canada increasingly sours during the US president’s second term. The United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement is up for review this year, and Trump has been taking a hard-line position ahead of those talks, including by issuing new tariff threats.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, meanwhile, has spoken out on the world stage against economic coercion by the United States.
Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Michigan, said the Canadian-funded project is a “huge boon” to her state and its economic future. “You’ll be able to move cargo from Montreal to Miami without ever stopping at a street light,” Slotkin told The Associated Press.
“So to shoot yourself in the foot and threaten the Gordie Howe Bridge means that this guy has completely lost the plot on what’s good for us versus just what’s spite against the Canadians,” Slotkin said.
Michigan, a swing state that Trump carried in both 2016 and 2024, has so far largely avoided the brunt of his second-term crackdown, which has targeted blue states with aggressive immigration raids and cuts to federal funding for major infrastructure projects.
Trump and Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have also maintained an unusually cordial relationship, with the president publicly praising her during an Oval Office appearance last April. The two also shared a hug last year ahead of Trump’s announcement of a new fighter jet mission for an Air National Guard base in Michigan.
While Canada paid for the project, the bridge will be operated under a joint ownership agreement between Michigan and Canada, said Stacey LaRouche, press secretary to Whitmer.
“This is the busiest trade crossing in North America,” LaRouche said, saying the bridge was “good for Michigan workers and it’s good for Michigan’s auto industry” as well as being a good example of bipartisan and international cooperation.
“It’s going to open one way or another, and the governor looks forward to attending the ribbon-cutting,” LaRouche said.
Rep. Shri Thanedar, the Democratic House representative of Detroit, said blocking the bridge would be “crazy” and said Trump’s attacks on Canada weren’t good for business or jobs. “The bridge is going to help Michigan’s economy. There’s so much commerce between Michigan and Canada. They’re one of our biggest partners,” Thanedar said.
Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell of Ann Arbor brushed aside the president’s threat, saying she’s looking forward to the bridge’s opening later in the spring. “And I’ll be there,” Dingell said.
“That bridge is the biggest crossing in this country on the northern border. It’s jobs. It’s about protecting our economy. It was built with union jobs on both sides,” said Dingell. “It’s going to open. Canada is our ally.”
