THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN of Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch – the alleged leader of a criminal gang – has been a source of intense interest not just here in Ireland but internationally.  

Hutch ultimately fell just short of being elected to a Dáil seat in the Dublin Central constituency this evening, losing out to Labour’s Marie Sherlock. 

International media covering the run up to the vote has felt the need to mention Hutch’s campaign, even if only in passing, such was the unusual nature of the candidacy. 

Hutch was released on bail in Spain in early November, which allowed him to return to Dublin and register as an independent candidate. 

So, how has the international media reacted to Hutch’s narrow loss?

The most dramatic coverage came from Politico, which ran the headline: 

“Ireland dodges a bullet as Dublin voters narrowly reject gangland boss” 

“Irish voters thwarted Dublin’s best-known gangland boss from gaining a seat in parliament following a marathon election count full of shocks and twists,” Shawn Pogatchnik wrote. 

“Over the course of Saturday night and Sunday morning, the nation watched the slowly unfolding results from the count center — many with horror and dread, others with anti-establishment glee — as Hutch secured fourth place in the initial round with a stunning 3,098 first-preference votes,” the article read. 

Explaining Ireland’s electoral system in detail, the Politico article brought readers through a blow-by-blow account of the proceedings at the RDS today. 

“For several rounds, that painstaking process brought further rewards for Hutch. His vote total climbed steadily, faster than those below him — fueling a growing sense of disbelief among the politically savvy crowd inside the Royal Dublin Society hall.”

Pogatchnik said Hutch “departed glum-faced, surrounded by security guards, minutes before the official final results were announced”.

The Associated Press (AP) in the United states was a little more understated, describing Hutch as “one of the more unorthodox independents”, adding that he “came within a whisker of winning a seat in Dublin”.

BBC said Hutch “may feel robbed after being hotly tipped to secure a seat” but added “he didn’t appear sore about his defeat when he arrived at the count centre”.

Labelling Hutch “the man poised to be the story of the Irish general election”, the verdict of the BBC was that the early election of Gary Gannon was the catalyst. 

Paris-based news agency Agence France Press (AFP) made note of Hutch’s stated profession, which he put down as “consultant” when registering as a candidate. 

The French agency also mentioned his “apparently low-profile lifestyle” and went through his list of run-ins with the law, including his being bailed for €100,000 in Spain as well as the fact that he was “found not guilty of the murder of a rival Dublin gang member in the Irish capital in 2016”. 

AFP also referred to analysis that said his popularity with voters in Dublin Central was the result of “an anti-establishment protest vote by those who felt abandoned by mainstream parties”.

“A left-wing politician Gary Gannon, elected in the same ward, said the vote was a ‘cry for help’ by disaffected voters tired of austerity,” the AFP article read. 

Reuters, a news agency based in Canada, said Hutch narrowly lost out “despite a surge of support in deprived areas of the Dublin Central constituency”.

Reuters also focused on Gary Gannon’s comments about the deprivation in the north inner city, while the agency quoted film director Jim Sheridan, who is making a documentary about Hutch and said “years and years of drugs and … nothing happening in that community.”

Reuters noted that the US State Department said in 2022 “that the Hutch drug trafficking gang was locked in a turf war with the Kinahan crime group”.

“The Hutch gang was named by the State Department when it offered a $5 million reward for help in arresting leaders of the Kinahan gang suspected of drug trafficking,” the agency’s article said.