PA Media Catherine Connolly is wearing a blue jacket with a black t-shirt. She has a chain around her neck. She has short grey hair. The background is blurry. PA Media

Irish presidential candidate Catherine Connolly has lodged a formal complaint with the Electoral Commission over a “malicious deep-fake” AI video.

The video appeared online on Tuesday night and showed an AI version of Connolly appearing to announce her withdrawal from Friday’s election.

Connolly called the video a “disgraceful attempt to mislead voters and undermine our democracy”.

In a statement, the independent TD (member of the Irish parliament) said she was “absolutely” still a candidate to become the 10th president of Ireland.

Facebook Catherine Connolly is pictured in a fake video. She has short grey hair. The heads of two other people are visible. There is a red warning label on the photo that reads AI generated. There is also a news box with her name and description. It is labelled as RTE news. Facebook

The video appeared online on Tuesday night

“It is a disgraceful attempt to mislead voters and undermine our democracy”, she said.

“I will not be distracted. I will continue my campaign in every county, meeting people and making the case for a hopeful, inclusive presidency.”

She added: “If you see this video, do not share it – report it, the surest reply to lies is to vote.”

Connolly’s campaign team said they have reported the video to the social media platforms it appeared on.

They have requested it be removed immediately and clearly listed as fake.

Who is Catherine Connolly?

Connolly has been an independent TD for the Galway West constituency since 2016.

She previously served as deputy speaker in the Dáil (Irish parliament) in Dublin.

A former member of the Irish Labour Party, she quit after not being allowed to run alongside Michael D Higgins in the 2007 general election.

Connolly has been backed in her Irish presidential bid by several left-leaning parties and a number of independents.