Two New Members of An Coimisiún Toghcháin Appointed by President Connolly
18 June 2026 – An Coimisiún Toghcháin, Ireland’s independent electoral commission, has welcomed the appointment of two new members to its Commission.
The appointments of Dr. Lee Komito and Mr. Ross Frenett (bios in editor’s note) follow the completion of a Public Appointments Service (PAS) process. The nominations were approved on 26 May by Dáil Éireann and on 27 May by Seanad Éireann in line with the Electoral Reform Act 2022 and the appointments made by President Catherine Connolly. These appointments to An Coimisiún are for an initial period of 4 years.
Chairperson of An Coimisiún Toghcháin Ms. Justice Marie Baker stated:
“These appointments mark an important strengthening of the expertise and capacity of An Coimisiún for the performance of our statutory functions, and we welcome to the Board the combined political science and tech expertise of Dr. Komito and Mr. Frenett ”
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For further information, please contact:
Brian Dawson, Communications and Public Affairs Manager,
An Coimisiún Toghcháin, The Electoral Commission,
Brian.dawson@electoralcommission.ie / 086 0749344
Editor’s Note:
New Commission Member Biographies
Mr. Ross Frenett is Founder and CEO of Moonshot, which develops AI-driven tools to counter terrorism, disinformation, and other online threats to democratic processes. He began his career in counter-extremism, leading programmes on terrorist recruitment and radicalisation before applying those skills to disinformation, electoral integrity, and AI governance. His work has spanned more than 55 countries, including a wartime disinformation resilience programme in Ukraine and, with Google, a prebunking campaign reaching over 120 million citizens ahead of the 2024 European Parliament elections.
From 2020 to 2024, he co-chaired a European Commission working group on countering extremist narratives and online recruitment. He holds a BA in History and Politics from University College Cork and an MA in Security and Society from King’s College London.
Dr. Lee Komito is Associate Professor Emeritus, University College Dublin. Dr. Komito received his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania and was awarded the first L & B Quinn Newman Fellowship from University College Dublin, in Politics and Sociology. Bringing together political anthropology, information studies, and the sociology of technology, he has published widely on clientelism and Irish politics, as well as on the impact of digital technologies on political, community and social life, including topics such as virtual communities, civic participation, e-governance, and social media and migration.
He was Head of the UCD School of Information and Communication Studies and serves as an expert evaluator for the European Commission on ICTs, digital innovation and e-inclusion as well as for the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA). His research on the social impact of new communications technologies and the production, dissemination and validation of digital information is elaborated particularly in one of his publications “The Information Revolution and Ireland: prospects and challenges”.
