Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar announced on Wednesday that he would step down within weeks once a successor is chosen

Varadkar said he would quit immediately as head of the center-right Fine Gael party, part of Ireland’s coalition government. He’ll be replaced as prime minister after a party leadership contest.

He said his reasons were “both personal and political" and he had no firm future plans. He said he plans to remain in parliament as a backbench lawmaker.

Varadkar, 45, has had two spells as taoiseach, or prime minister — between 2017 and 2020, and again since December 2022 as part of a job-share with Micheál Martin, head of coalition partner Fianna Fáil. (AP)