Simon Harris pledges 'new ideas, energy' after becoming Ireland's youngest PM

Simon Harris pledges 'new ideas, energy' after becoming Ireland's youngest PM

Lawmaker Simon Harris was elected Ireland's prime minister by a vote in parliament Tuesday, becoming at 37 the country’s youngest-ever leader.

• arris takes over as head of Ireland’s three-party coalition government from Leo Varadkar, who announced his surprise resignation last month. Harris, who served as higher education minister in Varadkar’s government, was the only candidate to replace him as head of the center-right Fine Gael party.
• Lawmakers in the Dáil, the lower house of Ireland’s parliament, confirmed Harris as taoiseach, or prime minister, by a 88-69 vote.
• He was formally appointed to the post by President Michael D. Higgins in a ceremony at the president's official residence in Dublin.