Fine Gael leadership contest deadline brought forward

Simon Harris' expected appointment as the next leader of Fine Gael and taoiseach may come a day early after the deadline for nominations was brought forward.

Nominations for the Fine Gael leadership contest had been due to remain open until Monday, however, that has now been brought forward to 1pm on Sunday.

So far, the Minister for Higher and Further Education is the only contender after other senior TDs announced they would not be contesting the leadership.

They include Minister for Enterprise Simon Coveney, who confirmed his decision not to run on Wednesday, followed by Minister for Justice Helen McEntee, Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys, and Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe, who each made similar announcements on Thursday.

The leadership contest was triggered after Leo Varadkar announced on Wednesday that he would be resigning as Taoiseach and leader of Fine Gael, stating: "I don’t feel I’m the best person for that job anymore."

-Additional reporting by Reuters