Poll Shock As Gallagher Surges Into Lead

Sean Gallagher is the new favorite to be Ireland's next president after a sensational new opinion poll showed the Independent candidate has surged to 38% in the polls.

That was an incredible 18 point gain in just nine days, propelling him ahead of Labour's Michael D Higgins, who is in second place on 27%.

It now looks like a two-horse race, with support fading for the other five candidates in the field.

Gallagher is best known as the star of RTE's Dragon's Den program, Ireland's equivalent of Shark Tank on ABC.

But he has also been involved in youth work, and enterprise development.

His emergence as a front runner in the presidential election has come as a shock to political commentators in Ireland.

But as the campaign enters its final week, the Monaghan man has the all-important momentum behind him.

Gallagher has managed to avoid most of the controversy which has dogged the other candidates, and turned the election into one of the most dramatic in Irish history.

While David Norris, Martin McGuinness and Mary Davis have seen their support ebb, Gallagher's central message about jobs and enterprise has struck a chord with voters.

Gallagher's biggest weakness is his links to Fianna Fail, the party still blamed by most of the electorate for Ireland's economic problems.

During a TV debate last week, Gallagher refused to criticize the decisions made by Fianna Fail governments over the past decade.

He was a member of the party's national executive until earlier this year, and turned down offers to run for the party in Louth in this year's general election.

His opponents will try to highlight his links to Fianna Fail over the coming week in the hope that the party's deep unpopularity will cost his support.

Analysts say the polls have shown consistent large support for a candidate from outside the mainstream political parties.

Earlier this year, that support was enjoyed by Senator David Norris, but as controversies surrounded his campaign, it appears that "independent" vote has moved to Gallagher.

The shock surge for Gallagher is a wake-up call for Michael D Higgins.

There was a consensus in Irish political circles that it was the Labour veteran's election to lose.

Now, without putting a foot wrong in the campaign, he has been overtaken by Gallagher.