Huge 18-point lead on election rival Humphreys

TD Murphy takes legal action against FG hopeful

- BY CIARA O'LOUGHLIN and CILLIAN SHERLOCK

CATHERINE Connolly has taken a major lead over presidential rival Heather Humphreys in the polls, the latest figures show - as the Fine Gael hopeful was hit by a fresh blow, with TD Paul Murphy taking legal action against her.

Ms Connolly, a left-wing independent TD backed by opposition parties including Sinn Fein, is on 38%, ahead of Fine Gael’s Ms Humphreys on 20%.

The Irish Times/Ipsos B&A poll says support for Fianna Fail candidate Jim Gavin, who pulled out of the contest, is at 5%.

Despite his declaration to drop out, electoral rules mean that Mr Gavin's name will still appear on the ballot paper and his votes will be counted.

Some 12% of voters said they would not vote, 6% said they would spoil their ballot and the number of undecideds was at 18%.

When those voters are excluded, Ms Connolly is on 60%, Ms Humphreys is on 32%, and Mr Gavin is on 8% - with the Fianna Fail candidate's votes projected to split fairly evenly if they were to be redistributed to the remaining hopefuls.