DUBLIN, Ireland: A Social Democrat Teachta Dála (TD) has issued an apology after admitting he wore "brown makeup" while dressing up as former U.S. President Barack Obama at a Halloween party 16 years ago.
Eoin Jayes, the Dublin Bay South deputy, who later worked on Obama's 2012 re-election campaign, described the act as "completely inappropriate" and said he takes full responsibility.
In a statement on X, Hayes acknowledged that a news outlet is preparing to publish photographs of the event. "At a Halloween party 16 years ago, while president of the Students' Union in University College Cork, I dressed up as Barack Obama, who I greatly admired at the time," he wrote. "As part of this costume, I wore brown makeup on my face and hands. While I did not understand how hurtful it was then, I have since come to recognise it and am profoundly sorry. What I did was completely inappropriate and a huge mistake."
"I condemn racism in all its forms and do not condone that behaviour under any circumstances. I take full responsibility for my actions and, from the bottom of my heart, I apologise for any and all hurt caused," Hayes added.
The controversy comes only weeks after Hayes was reinstated to the Social Democrats' parliamentary party following his suspension over misleading statements about shares he held in Palantir Technologies, a company that supplies technology to the Israeli military.
Hayes had initially claimed he divested the shares before his election to Dublin City Council last year. However, he later admitted he sold them only after taking office, netting 199,000 euros before tax. The Social Democrats had called for sanctions against Israel months earlier.
In response to the uproar, Hayes donated 43,443 euros — reflecting the increase in the value of the shares during Israel's military offensive in Gaza — to three aid organisations working in the territory.
The party suspended Hayes indefinitely in December, just weeks after he was elected to the Dáil, but lifted the ban in July following a review by its national executive and parliamentary party.
