SF wins seat in east Antrim as counts conclude

Final results in the Assembly election has confirmed power flowing from the smaller parties to the larger parties at Stormont, with both Sinn Fein and the DUP consolidating their positions at the expense of their nationalist and unionist rivals, the SDLP and UUP respectively.

Counting has now concluded, giving the DUP 38 seats, Sinn Fein 29, UUP 16, SDLP 14, Alliance 8 and others 3.

The results will ensure the cheerful return of the DUP’s Peter Robinson as First Minister and Sinn Fein’s Martin McGuinness as Deputy First Minister.

With every constituency a a hard-fought battle, Sinn Fein made a significant breakthrough in east Antrim, where party veteran Oliver McMullan made a statement for the party by claiming a seat in the DUP bastion.

It added to the Sinn Fein gain in Fermanagh/South Tyrone, and was real compensation for the party’s failure to make viable gains in other areas, notably Upper Bann.

Sinn Fein held onto its extraordinary five seat total in Gerry Adams’s west Belfast, but will wonder whether some better vote management might have permitted gains in the nationalist constituencies in the west and south of the Six Counties.

The DUP finished with a record number of seats, maintaining their lead over Sinn Fein and affirming Peter Robinson’s once-troubled leadership of the party.

Having lost two seats, one in Strangford and one in West Tyrone, the DUP picked up four in North Down, South Antrim, North Belfast and Lagan Valley.

It is also understood the results will allow Sinn Fein to have the 2nd, 5th, and 8th choice in the allocation of Ministeries under the d’Hondt process.

Excluding outside arrangements or agreements, the choices under the d’Hondt rule fall in the following order: DUP, SF, DUP, UUP, SF, SDLP, DUP, SF, DUP, Alliance, UUP.

Although coming up short behind the SDLP in the popular vote, the UUP will retain its second Ministry in the Six-County executive thanks to generous transfers from other parties, which allowed it to cut its losses to just two Assembly seats, keeping it ahead of the SDLP.

There was also good news for the moderate unionist Alliance party, which gained an extra seat in east Belfast, but at the expense of well-limked former PUP leader, Dawn Purvis.

In north Antrim, TUV leader Jim Allister scraped in on his own, while the Greens retained their seat in north Down.

First Minister-elect Peter Robinson edicated his Assembly election success to PSNI member Ronan Kerr, who was killed earlier this year in an attack by a breakaway IRA group.

“He had a vision for Northern Ireland and he wanted to serve his community,” he said, adding: “I therefore not only dedicate the victory to Ronan but dedicate myself to the vision that he had.”

Speaking at his election count in Ballymena, Martin McGuinness said that he wanted to see “more realism” from the UUP and SDLP in the next Assembly term.

“I would like to see those parties as well as the Alliance Party working in the spirit of co-operation,” he said. “If Peter Robinson and I can work together, then surely all of those parties can work with us.”

ASSEMBLY RESULTS

(Use a fixed font, eg courier, for best results)

Results (seats won, first preference vote, and change since 2007) with 108 out of 108 seats filled:

 DUP     38 (+2)   30.0%   -0.1%
 SF      29 (+1)   26.9%   +0.8%
 SDLP    14 (-2)   14.2%   -1.0%
 UUP     16 (-2)   13.2%   -1.7%
 AP      8  (+1)    7.7%   +2.5%
 TUV     1  (+1)    2.5%   +2.5%
 Oth.    2  (-1)    5.4%   -2.9%

RESULTS BY CONSTITUENCY

Results are listed here for the parties in terms of seats won so far, first preference votes and their change in first preference vote since 2007.

Note some constituencies have shifted their boundaries, while a number of minor parties such as the UK Unionist Party were not standing on this occasion.

East Antrim (SF gain from UUP)

 DUP     3   46.2    +0.7
 UUP     1   16.9    -5.0
 AP      1   15.5    -0.2
 SF      1   8.2     +4.3
 SDLP    0   4.6     -1.3

Elected: Roy Beggs - UUP, Sammy Wilson - DUP, Alastair Ross - DUP, David Hilditch - DUP, Oliver McMullan - SF, Stewart Dickson - Alliance

East Belfast (Alliance gain from PUP)

 DUP     3   44.1    +6.4
 AP      2   26.3    +7.5
 UUP     1   9.7     -12.3
 Ind.U   0   4.6     +4.6
 SF      0   3.2     -0.4

Elected: Michael Copeland - UUP, Sammy Douglas - DUP, Robin Newton - DUP, Peter Robinson - DUP, Judith Cochrane - Alliance, Chris Lyttle - Alliance

East Derry (Ind.U gain from UUP)

 DUP     3   36.9    -2.9
 SF      1   21.1    +1
 SDLP    1   14.9    +1.9
 UUP     0   8.4     -10
 AP      0   5.5     +1.4
 Ind.U   1   8.6     +8.6

Elected: Gregory Campbell - DUP, John Dallat - SDLP, Adrian McQuillan - DUP, George Robinson - DUP, Cathal O’hOisin - SF, David McClarty - Ind.U

Fermanagh/South Tyrone (SF gain from SDLP)

 SF      3   40.3    +4.0
 DUP     2   24.4    -1.1
 UUP     1   19.3    -0.4
 SDLP    0   9.6     -4.4
 AP      0   1.8     +0.6

Elected: Tom Elliott - UUP, Arlene Foster - DUP, Michelle Gildernew - SF, Maurice Morrow - DUP, Sean Lynch - SF, Phil Flanagan - SF

Foyle (no change)

 SDLP    3   35.3    -1.7
 SF      2   34      +3.2
 DUP     1   18.4    +1.5
 AP      0   0.9     +0.3
 UUP     0   0       -4.3

Elected: William Hay - DUP, Martina Anderson - SF, Mark H Durkan - SDLP, Colum Eastwood - SDLP, Raymond McCartney - SF, Pat Ramsey - SDLP

Lagan Valley (DUP gain from SF)

 DUP     4   53.1    +5.1
 UUP     1   20.4    +1.8
 AP      1   12.4    +3.4
 SDLP    0   6.1     -0.7
 SF      0   3.4     -8.8

Elected: Basil McCrea - UUP, Jonathan Craig - DUP, Paul Givan - DUP, Brenda Hale - DUP, Edwin Poots - DUP, Trevor Lunn - Alliance

Mid-Ulster (no change)

 SF      3   49.2    +1.6
 DUP     1   16.7    -2.8
 SDLP    1   14.7    -2.8
 UUP     1   10.3    -0.5
 AP      0   0.9     +0.4

Elected: Ian McCrea - DUP, Martin McGuinness - SF, Patsy McGlone - SDLP, Sandra Overend - UUP, Francie Molloy - SF, Michelle O’Neill - SF

Newry and Armagh (no change)

 SF      3   40.8    -1.2
 SDLP    1   23.5    +3.8
 UUP     1   18.7    +5.6
 DUP     1   13.1    +0.2
 AP      0   1.6     +1

Elected: Danny Kennedy - UUP, William Irwin - DUP, Dominic Bradley - SDLP, Cathal Boylan - SF, Mickey Brady - SF, Conor Murphy - SF

North Antrim (TUV gain from SDLP)

 DUP     3   47.6    -1.4
 SF      1   15.3    -0.7
 UUP     1   11.7    -2.6
 SDLP    0   9.1     -3.1
 AP      0   4.6     +1.8
 TUV     1   10.1    +10.1

Elected: Paul Frew - DUP, Mervyn Storey - DUP, Daithi McKay - SF, David McIlveen - DUP, Jim Allister - TUV, Robin Swann - UUP

North Belfast (DUP gain from UUP)

 DUP     3   37.1    -0.3
 SF      2   31.9    +1.3
 SDLP    1   12      -1.7
 UUP     0   8.2     -0.2
 AP      0   6.3     +4.6

Elected: Nelson McCausland - DUP, Gerry Kelly - SF, Paula Bradley - DUP, William Humphrey - DUP, Alban Maginness - SDLP, Caral Ni Chuilin - SF

North Down (DUP gain from Ind.U)

 DUP     3   44.2    +10.1
 AP      1   18.6    +8.4
 UUP     1   10.4    -13.3
 GRN     1   7.9     -1.4
 SDLP    0   2.7     -0.9
 SF      0   1       -0.2

Elected: Gordon Dunne - DUP, Alex Easton - DUP, Peter Weir - DUP, Leslie Cree - UUP, Stephen Farry - Alliance, Steven Agnew - Green

South Antrim (DUP gain from SDLP)

 DUP     3   38.3    +3.8
 UUP     1   17.8    -2.7
 SF      1   14.5    -2
 AP      1   14.2    +1
 SDLP    0   10.6    -0.5

Elected: Danny Kinahan - UUP, Trevor Clarke - DUP, Paul Girvan - DUP, Pam Lewis - DUP, Mitchel McLaughlin - SF, David Ford - Alliance

South Belfast (no change)

 DUP     1   24.3    +1.9
 SDLP    2   23.9    -2.9
 AP      1   19.8    +7.2
 UUP     1   13.6    -4.8
 SF      1   12.5    -0.7

Elected: Dr Alasdair McDonnell - SDLP, Anna Lo - Alliance, Michael McGimpsey - UUP, Jimmy Spratt - DUP, Conall McDevitt - SDLP, Alex Maskey - SF

South Down (no change)

 SDLP    2   35.8    +4.4
 SF      2   30.9    +0.2
 DUP     1   12.5    -5.2
 UUP     1   10.6    +0.9
 UKIP    0   5.6     +2.9

Elected: Margaret Ritchie - SDLP, Caitriona Ruane - SF, John McCallister - UUP, Jim Wells - DUP, Willie Clarke - SF, Karen McKevitt - SDLP

Strangford (no change)

 DUP     3   48.8    -1.4
 UUP     2   20.4    +2.3
 AP      1   14.4    +3.1
 SDLP    0   8.5     0
 SF      0   3       0

Elected: Jonathan Bell - DUP, Michelle McIlveen - DUP, Kieran McCarthy - Alliance, Simon Hamilton - DUP, Mike Nesbitt - UUP, David McNarry - UUP

Upper Bann (no change)

 SF      1   27.2    +1.9
 DUP     2   27.1    -4.3
 UUP     2   24.6    +3.4
 SDLP    1   11.4    -1.3
 AP      0   6.5     +4.7

Elected: Jo-Anne Dobson - UUP, Sam Gardiner - UUP, Sydney Anderson - DUP, Stephen Moutray - DUP, Dolores Kelly - SDLP, John O’Dowd - SF

West Belfast (no change)

 SF      5   66.1    -3.8
 SDLP    1   13.2    +1
 DUP     0   7.5     -3.4
 PBPA    0   4.8     +2.5
 UUP     0   4.2     +2.6

Elected: Paul Maskey - SF, Jennifer McCann - SF, Fra McCann - SF, Alex Attwood - SDLP, Sue Ramsey - SF, Pat Sheehan - SF

West Tyrone (SDLP gain from Ind.) (UUP gain from DUP)

 SF      3   50.2    +7.8
 DUP     1   23.1    +2.7
 UUP     1   10.3    +1.9
 SDLP    1   8.6     -5.3
 Ind.    0   5.0     -6.3

Elected: Ross Hussey - UUP, Tom Buchanan - DUP, Joe Byrne - SDLP, Michaela Boyle - SF, Pat Doherty - SF, Barry McElduff - SF

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