Leo Varadkar’s resignation as Fine Gael leader and Irish taoiseach was as close to a total surprise as modern politics is capable of springing. He is 45 and seems in robust health. Ireland’s economy is in comparatively resilient shape. There is another year to run for the three-party coalition. And, while his political touch had seemed to desert him in the two recent referendum campaigns, Mr Varadkar had not seemed under imminent threat.
In his announcement, Mr Varadkar said his reasons were “personal and political, but mainly political”. Absent further explanation, this implies he meant it when he said that he was “no longer the best person” for the job of securing the re-election of the coalition with Fianna Fáil and the Greens next March. Mr Varadkar has been grappling with healthcare and housing crises, and lost the referendums badly, feeding a slide in popularity. But it is possible the undoubted problem of burnout in modern 24/7 politics may have claimed another victim.
