Crisis talks in Northern Ireland after Sinn Fein surge flattens DUP

The DUP notched 225,413 first preferences, down 1.11 percentage points on a year ago, to Sinn Fein’s 224,245 – an increase of 3.89 percentage points.In terms of the overall picture, the DUP secured 28.06% of first preferences to Sinn Fein’s 27.91%.

The DUP previously had 10 seats more than Sinn Fein.

The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) won 12 seats, the Ulster Unionist Party 10, the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (APNI) eight and others five.

The Northern Ireland Act of 1998, which implements the Good Friday agreement and institutionalises power sharing, repeats the British government’s guarantees that Northern Ireland will not be cut loose without its own consent.

Despite the DUP’s poor electoral performance Foster insists she will carry on as first minister, and has vowed to “get the executive up and running again”.

Sinn Fein leaders said Saturday’s result meant the day was drawing closer for an all-Ireland referendum on uniting the island politically outside the United Kingdom, an issue given greater importance because of Britain’s determination to withdraw from the European Union.

In the presence of his wife Lynda, his son, UUP chairman Lord Empey and the party’s MEP, Jim Nicholson, he told journalists at the Park Avenue Hotel in east Belfast that after nearly five years as UUP leader he would be resigning.

The elections – triggered by the collapse of devolved government in Northern Ireland six weeks ago following controversy over a botched green energy scheme – saw turnout hit its highest level, 65%, in nearly two decades.

Former DUP first minister Peter Robinson has warned politicians to step back and avert a headlong rush towards the destruction of devolved government.

“If that means no deal and no new Stormont government, then so be it – we should return to direct rule”.

It is striking how male dominance of Northern Ireland’s harsh politics has been vanquished.

The Democratic Unionist Party can no longer abuse the parliamentary veto known as the “petition of concern” to veto marriage equality in the Northern Ireland Assembly..

“The cause of the election was Sinn Fein and republicanism wanting to rerun the election, they have mobilised their vote in a very effective way”.

Deeply engrained historical enmity was also exacerbated by the June vote for Britain to leave the European Union, which the DUP supported but Sinn Fein opposed.

The election was triggered when Sinn Fein’s Martin McGuinness quit as deputy first minister over a costly, bungled green energy subsidy scheme rolled out by first minister Foster when she was economy minister. As a result, Sinn Féin walked away from power sharing in January, triggering the election.

“I hope that numbers turn out, big numbers and that the result will be clear there can be an assembly and an executive put together”, he said of the election.