Conor McGregor’s bid for the presidency of Ireland has ended in humiliation. After failing to receive a single council nomination, and under intense pressure from ROSA Socialist Feminist Movement, the disgraced fighter has withdrawn before even reaching the ballot.
ROSA had called a mass protest outside Dublin City Council to ensure that Far Right councillors could not nod through his nomination without facing the fury of women, survivors, and activists who refuse to allow a rapist to launder his reputation through public office.
This retreat is not a surprise. McGregor was found liable in the civil courts for the sexual assault of Nikita Hand, with a High Court jury awarding her €248,603 in damages in November 2024. Despite this, the Director of Public Prosecutions had earlier declined to bring a criminal case, a decision that sparked outrage and mobilised hundreds in Dublin on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. ROSA organised the march from City Hall to the DPP offices, demanding accountability from both the State and from men who abuse their power.
Activists made it clear that McGregor’s attempted political stunt would be met with mass resistance:
“Unlike the macho far-right who peddle misogyny and racism while they claim to be ‘protectors’ of women, we actually campaign against gender violence.”
This campaign has shown that when survivors and activists fight back, the powerful can be held to account. Nikita Hand’s courage has already broken through the silence around sexual violence, and her victories in court has inspired others to demand change. The sight of hundreds on the streets, all of us chanting that McGregor is a rapist and demanding systemic reform sent a message no politican could ignore.
The Presidential withdrawal is a win, but it is not the end. As Ruth Coppinger of ROSA said outside City Hall:
“The levels of fortitude you need to take a case through our courts are beyond comprehension. The legal system is horrendous for survivors of gender-based violence. That’s why we need to keep building a movement.”
For survivors everywhere, the lesson is clear: organised feminist protest works. We cannot rely on the courts, the DPP, or the political establishment to deliver justice. We must keep fighting in the streets, amplifying survivors’ voices, and dismantling the culture of impunity that allows abusers to thrive.
McGregor’s fall from political pretender to international disgrace is a reminder: no amount of wealth, fame, or manufactured “hard man” image can erase the truth. And the truth is this: Conor McGregor is a rapist, and we will never let him rewrite history.