Nutriband CEO Gareth Sheridan declares presidential bid

Nutriband CEO Gareth Sheridan has announced his candidacy for the Irish presidential race via a social media post on Sunday.

At 35 years old, Sheridan would become the youngest ever candidate for the Irish president’s office.

His spokesman said that after months of consultations with councillors, Sheridan expects to have the backing of at least four local authorities, and “possibly six or seven”.

Nutriband was previously chaired by Sean Gallagher, who was an unsuccessful candidate for president in 2011 and 2018.

In a statement, Sheridan confirmed he would step down from his role with the company to seek a presidential nomination.

“I confirm that I am seeking a nomination to contest this October’s Presidential Election, hoping to be the youngest ever candidate for that office, turning 36 in two weeks,” his statement read.

The US-based pharma company Nutriband, of which Sheridan is the founder and chief executive, is quoted on the Nasdaq exchange in New York with a valuation of some $80 million.

In a wide-ranging interview featured in the latest issue of Hot Press, Sheridan expressed admiration for current president Michael D. Higgins, but stressed the need for a forward-looking figure to lead the country into its next chapter.

“Michael D. did a great job commemorating our first 100 years. Someone needs to do an excellent job getting the next 100 started."

He also spoke of the scale and urgency of the housing crisis, as well as the systemic failures he believes have contributed to the situation.

“I’ve become obsessed with how we can fix this housing issue,” he said.

“I’ve been meeting with lots of people and organisations in the space. We have the ability to solve it, but nobody’s making the hard decisions or looking at it pragmatically.”

“The housing crisis should have been 15 or 20 years ago, with the way the economy was going and the way the country was heading. How has it caught us off guard that all of a sudden, people want to live and build businesses here?”

In an interview for RTÉ Radio 1’s News At One yesterday, Sheridan said: “it’s not in my personality to sit back, idle, and watch from afar as a situation unfold, if I think I can add benefit to it.”

An election for the largely ceremonial role is expected to take place around the end of October, as it must take place in the 60 days before the end of President Michael D. Higgins term on November 11.

A candidate must secure nominations from at least 20 members of the Irish parliament or at least four local authorities.

Two candidates have already met the criteria so far, namely former farming journalist and EU commissioner Mairead McGuinness, and former Galway mayor Catherine Connolly.

Read Gareth Sheridan's full interview in the current issue of Hot Press, out now: