2023 Newry, Mourne and Down District Council election

Last updated
2023 Newry, Mourne and Down District Council election
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  2019 18 May 20232027 

All 41 council seats
21 seats needed for a majority
 First partySecond partyThird party
  Michelle O'Neill (cropped from Martin McGuinness, Michelle O'Neill, Mary Lou McDonald and Gerry Adams).jpg
Colum Eastwood MLA.JPG
Official portrait of Sir Jeffrey M. Donaldson crop 2.jpg
Leader Michelle O'Neill [n 1] Colum Eastwood Jeffrey Donaldson
Party Sinn Féin SDLP DUP
Last election16113
Seats won2085
Seat changeIncrease2.svg 4Decrease2.svg 3Increase2.svg 2
Popular vote37,03213,1709,124
Percentage48.3%17.2%11.9%
SwingIncrease2.svg11.8%Decrease2.svg 5.8%Increase2.svg 3.4%

 Fourth partyFifth partySixth party
 
Naomi Long 2021.png
Doug Beattie.png
Leader Naomi Long No leader Doug Beattie
Party Alliance Independent Ulster Unionist
Last election254
Seats won521
Seat changeIncrease2.svg 3Decrease2.svg 3Decrease2.svg 3
Popular vote7,1763,6084,062
Percentage9.4%4.7%5.3%
SwingIncrease2.svg 2.0%Decrease2.svg 7.8%Decrease2.svg 4.7%

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council Election 2023.svg
Newry, Mourne and Down 2023 Council Election Results by DEA (Shaded by the plurality of FPVs)

Council control before election

No overall control

Council control after election

TBC

The 2023 election to Newry, Mourne and Down District Council was held on 18 May 2023, alongside other local elections in Northern Ireland, two weeks after local elections in England. [1] The Northern Ireland elections were delayed by 2 weeks to avoid overlapping with the coronation of King Charles III. [2]

Contents

41 members were returned to the council via Single Transferable Vote.

Election results

Newry, Mourne and Down Borough Council Election Result 2023
PartySeatsGainsLossesNet gain/lossSeats %Votes %Votes+/−
  Sinn Féin 2040Increase2.svg 448.7848.3237,032Increase2.svg11.79
  SDLP 803Decrease2.svg 319.5117.1813,170Decrease2.svg 5.86
  DUP 520Increase2.svg 212.2011.909,124Increase2.svg 3.40
  Alliance 530Increase2.svg 312.209.367,176Increase2.svg 1.92
  Independent 203Decrease2.svg 34.884.713,608Decrease2.svg 7.78
  Ulster Unionist 103Decrease2.svg 32.445.304,062Decrease2.svg 4.73
  Aontú 000Steady2.svg 00.001.311,002Decrease2.svg 0.21
  TUV 000Steady2.svg 00.001.15880New
  Green (NI) 000Steady2.svg 00.000.77589Increase2.svg 0.32
Total4176,643

Note: "Votes" are the first preference votes.

The 2023 LG election in NMD saw the further decline of the SDLP and UUP, whereas Sinn Fein and Alliance made gains, with the DUP also gaining two councillors.

Districts summary

Results of the 2023 Newry, Mourne and Down District Council election by DEA
District Electoral Area (DEA) %
Cllrs
 %
Cllrs
 %
Cllrs
 %
Cllrs
 %
Cllrs
 %
Cllrs
Total
cllrs
Sinn Féin SDLP DUP Alliance UUP Independents and others
Crotlieve45.673Increase2.svg 117.741Decrease2.svg 14.570 Steady2.svg5.030 Steady2.svg3.420 Steady2.svg23.572Steady2.svg6
Downpatrick43.452Increase2.svg 130.712Decrease2.svg 13.270 Steady2.svg13.751Increase2.svg 12.450 Steady2.svg6.370 Decrease2.svg 15
Newry65.154Increase2.svg 118.152Steady2.svg0.000 Steady2.svg7.940 Steady2.svg2.720 Steady2.svg6.040 Decrease2.svg 16
Rowallane10.780 Steady2.svg16.421Steady2.svg34.172Steady2.svg24.592Increase2.svg 112.910 Decrease2.svg 11.120 Steady2.svg5
Slieve Croob47.563Increase2.svg 111.680 Decrease2.svg 119.341Increase2.svg 113.281Steady2.svg4.300 Decrease2.svg 13.850 Steady2.svg5
Slieve Gullion67.925Steady2.svg16.001Steady2.svg2.450 Steady2.svg2.030 Steady2.svg8.151Steady2.svg3.460 Steady2.svg7
The Mournes41.873Steady2.svg12.911Steady2.svg25.652Increase2.svg 18.271Increase2.svg 13.820 Decrease2.svg 17.470 Decrease2.svg 17
Total48.3220Increase2.svg 417.188Decrease2.svg 311.905Increase2.svg 29.365Increase2.svg 35.301Decrease2.svg 37.932Decrease2.svg 341

District results

Crotlieve

2019: 2 x Sinn Féin, 2 x SDLP, 2 x Independent

2023: 3 x Sinn Féin, 2 x Independent, 1 x SDLP

2019–2023 Change: Sinn Féin gain from SDLP

Crotlieve - 6 seats [3]
PartyCandidateFPv%Count
12345678910
Sinn Féin Selina Murphy14.20%1,8631,879.00        
SDLP Declan McAteer*9.40%1,2331,310.00 1,324.00 1,473.00 1,577.00 1,683.00 1,683.25 2,507.25  
Independent Mark Gibbons*8.47%1,1111,143.00 1,150.00 1,242.00 1,610.00 1,721.00 1,721.75 1,793.75 1,888.75 
Sinn Féin Kate Murphy10.65%1,3971,402.00 1,403.00 1,453.00 1,491.00 1,493.00 1,494.50 1,611.50 1,771.50 1,774.62
Sinn Féin Mickey Ruane*10.57%1,3871,413.00 1,413.00 1,446.00 1,570.00 1,574.00 1,575.00 1,618.00 1,669.00 1,670.04
Independent Jarlath Tinnelly*7.95%1,0431,059.00 1,063.00 1,142.00 1,252.00 1,306.00 1,306.25 1,367.25 1,504.25 1,513.35
Sinn Féin Gerry O'Hare*10.25%1,3451,350.00 1,350.00 1,376.00 1,389.00 1,391.00 1,391.00 1,447.00 1,512.00 1,512.26
SDLP Karen McKevitt*6.94%911948.00 964.00 1,130.00 1,189.00 1,305.00 1,305.25    
DUP Keith Parke4.57%600603.00 946.00 957.00 965.00      
Independent Jim Boylan6.24%818841.00 850.00 926.00       
Alliance Daniel Neary5.03%660710.00 742.00        
Ulster Unionist Ricky McGaffin3.42%448451.00         
SDLP Anne Sheridan1.40%183         
Green (NI) Hugh O'Reilly0.73%96         
Independent Finbarr Lambe0.18%23         
Electorate: 21,313  Valid: 13,118 (61.55%)  Spoilt: 140  Quota: 1,875  Turnout: 13,258 (62.21%)  

    Downpatrick

    2019: 3 x SDLP, 1 x Sinn Féin, 1 x Independent

    2023: 2 x Sinn Féin, 2 x SDLP, 1 x Alliance

    2019–2023 Change: Sinn Féin and Alliance gain from SDLP and Independent

    Downpatrick - 5 seats [3]
    PartyCandidateFPv%Count
    12345678910
    Sinn Féin Oonagh Hanlon*19.32%1,579         
    SDLP Gareth Sharvin*15.99%1,3071,325.59 1,348.72 1,360.98 1,388.78     
    Alliance Cadogan Enright*13.75%1,1241,131.67 1,172.67 1,209.67 1,334.80 1,377.80    
    Sinn Féin Philip Campbell14.19%1,1601,262.70 1,266.70 1,268.70 1,271.70 1,377.70    
    SDLP Conor Galbraith7.22%590597.41 608.41 617.41 641.41 705.06 711.06 718.34 721.23 1,166.23
    Sinn Féin Louise Rooney9.94%812866.08 877.21 877.47 877.60 946.11 946.11 950.03 959.38 1,057.38
    SDLP Aurla King7.50%613620.67 629.67 643.67 666.67 705.80 712.80 716.16 717.86  
    Independent Éamon Mac Con Midhe4.94%404409.46 415.72 418.72 435.72      
    DUP Sharon Harvey3.27%267267.26 268.26 388.26       
    Ulster Unionist Alexander Burgess2.45%200200.52 201.52        
    Green (NI) Declan Walsh1.43%117117.65         
    Electorate: 15,691  Valid: 8,173 (52.09%)  Spoilt: 113  Quota: 1,363  Turnout: 8,286 (52.81%)  

      Newry

      2019: 3 x Sinn Féin, 2 x SDLP, 1 x Independent

      2023: 4 x Sinn Féin, 2 x SDLP

      2019–2023 Change: Sinn Féin gain from Independent

      Newry - 6 seats [3]
      PartyCandidateFPv%Count
      123456
      Sinn Féin Valerie Harte*19.95%2,085     
      Sinn Féin Cathal King*18.96%1,982     
      Sinn Féin Geraldine Kearns*12.05%1,2591,719.88    
      Sinn Féin Aidan Mathers14.19%1,4831,526.96    
      SDLP Michael Savage*8.95%935949.84 1,151.03 1,192.47 1,203.34 1,382.34
      SDLP Doire Finn9.20%961994.04 1,120.89 1,211.33 1,226.98 1,357.98
      Alliance Helena Young7.94%830845.68 925.33 963.69 988.12 1,199.12
      Aontú Sharon Loughran3.04%318322.20 356.42 372.94 386.24  
      Ulster Unionist Andrew McCracken2.72%285285.00 287.95 289.35 289.35  
      Independent Mariya Krupska2.00%209213.76 237.95 248.03 272.10  
      Workers' Party Nicola Grant1.00%104106.24 123.94 130.66   
      Electorate: 19,901  Valid: 10,451 (52.51%)  Spoilt: 172  Quota: 1,494  Turnout: 10,623 (53.38%)  

        Rowallane

        2019: 2 x DUP, 1 x UUP, 1 x Alliance, 1 x SDLP

        2023: 2 x DUP, 2 x Alliance, 1 x SDLP

        2019–2023 Change: Alliance gain from UUP

        Rowallane - 5 seats [3]
        PartyCandidateFPv%Count
        1234
        DUP Jonny Jackson*17.60%1,414   
        SDLP Terry Andrews*16.42%1,3191,335 1,860 
        DUP Callum Bowsie*16.57%1,3311,337 1,340 
        Alliance Tierna Kelly12.01%965996 1,118 1,403
        Alliance David Lee-Surginor*12.58%1,0111,056 1,199 1,347
        Ulster Unionist Robert Burgess*11.66%9371,018 1,021 1,024
        Sinn Féin Dermot Kennedy10.78%866872   
        Ulster Unionist Rachel Gracey1.26%101   
        Green (NI) Ali McColl1.12%90   
        Electorate: 15,865  Valid: 8,034 (50.64%)  Spoilt: 81  Quota: 1,340  Turnout: 8,115 (51.15%)  

          Slieve Croob

          2019: 2 x Sinn Féin, 1 x SDLP, 1 x UUP, 1 x Alliance

          2023: 3 x Sinn Féin, 1 x DUP, 1 x Alliance

          2019–2023 Change: Sinn Féin and DUP gain from SDLP and UUP

          Slieve Croob - 5 seats [3]
          PartyCandidateFPv%Count
          123456
          DUP Alan Lewis*19.34%1,723     
          Sinn Féin Jim Brennan*17.61%1,569     
          Sinn Féin Róisín Howell*16.19%1,4431,443.14 1,447.14 1,484.39 1,531.39 
          Alliance Andrew McMurray*13.28%1,1831,189.02 1,244.02 1,246.77 1,327.02 1,521.02
          Sinn Féin Siobhan O'Hare13.76%1,2261,226.42 1,232.42 1,259.87 1,301.47 1,305.87
          SDLP Hugh Gallagher*8.48%756758.80 771.80 778.50 1,082.18 1,170.54
          Ulster Unionist Walter Lyons4.30%383603.36 604.50 604.55 607.25  
          SDLP Will Polland3.20%285286.40 299.40 302.45   
          Aontú Rosemary McGlone2.75%245245.70 248.70 249.50   
          Green (NI) Seana Pitt1.10%9898.70     
          Electorate: 15,797  Valid: 8,911 (56.41%)  Spoilt: 92  Quota: 1,486  Turnout: 9,003 (56.99%)  

            Slieve Gullion

            2019: 5 x Sinn Féin, 1 x SDLP, 1 x UUP

            2023: 5 x Sinn Féin, 1 x SDLP, 1 x UUP

            2019–2023 Change: No change

            Slieve Gullion - 7 seats [3]
            PartyCandidateFPv%Count
            123456789
            Sinn Féin Aoife Finnegan*13.16%1,934        
            Sinn Féin Áine Quinn13.15%1,932        
            Sinn Féin Declan Murphy*12.98%1,907        
            SDLP Pete Byrne*9.85%1,4471,462.30 1,468.30 1,472.54 1,473.35 1,554.56 1,670.23 2,404.23 
            Sinn Féin Mickey Larkin*10.61%1,5581,573.26 1,579.30 1,640.54 1,645.61 1,669.12 1,719.61 1,795.24 1,946.24
            Sinn Féin Oonagh Magennis*8.96%1,3161,368.55 1,376.60 1,379.62 1,387.95 1,411.32 1,445.60 1,511.77 1,617.77
            Ulster Unionist David Taylor*8.15%1,1971,197 1,198 1,198 1,198.09 1,226.09 1,570.09 1,592.15 1,628.15
            Sinn Féin Barra Ó'Muirí*9.06%1,3311,339.30 1,343.30 1,348.86 1,385.76 1,393.08 1,432.23 1,463.35 1,503.35
            SDLP Killian Feehan6.15%903904.20 913.20 913.72 917.72 1,015.85 1,102.07   
            Aontú Liam Reichenberg2.99%439439.50 446.50 447.66 448.05 489.09    
            DUP Linda Henry2.45%360360.10 360.10 360.14 360.14 360.14    
            Alliance Caolán Gregory2.03%298298.90 321.95 322.47 323.10     
            Green (NI) Molly Ní Mhánais0.47%6969.15        
            Electorate: 22,734  Valid: 14,691 (64.62%)  Spoilt: 266  Quota: 1,837  Turnout: 14,957 (65.79%)  

              The Mournes

              2019: 3 x Sinn Féin, 1 x SDLP, 1 x DUP, 1 x UUP, 1 x Independent

              2023: 3 x Sinn Féin, 2 x DUP, 1 x SDLP, 1 x Alliance

              2019–2023 Change: DUP and Alliance gain from UUP and Independent

              The Mournes - 7 seats [3]
              PartyCandidateFPv%Count
              12345678
              DUP Glyn Hanna*17.50%2,340       
              Sinn Féin Michael Rice*15.26%2,040       
              Sinn Féin Willie Clarke*14.32%1,915       
              Sinn Féin Leeanne McEvoy*12.29%1,6431,643.56 1,946.14     
              SDLP Laura Devlin*10.25%1,3701,372.80 1,379.64 1,476.76 1,516.30 1,679.41  
              DUP Henry Reilly*8.15%1,0891,622.96 1,623.68 1,623.86 1,626.14 1,626.31 1,638.11 1,835.11
              Alliance Jill Truesdale8.27%1,1051,108.64 1,116.38 1,140.32 1,206.76 1,249.09 1.505.94 1,626.94
              TUV Harold McKee*6.58%880962.68 963.06 963.24 966.24 966.24 972.61 1,163.12
              Ulster Unionist Lloyd Douglas3.82%511537.88 538.06 538.60 539.60 540.45 557.70  
              SDLP Dominic O'Reilly2.67%357359.62 386.52 439.26 443.16 467.13   
              Green (NI) Sean O Baoill0.89%119119.28 120.36 127.02     
              Electorate: 22,227  Valid: 13,369 (60.15%)  Spoilt: 179  Quota: 1,672  Turnout: 13,548 (60.95%)  

                Changes during the term

                † Co-options

                Date co-optedElectoral AreaPartyOutgoingCo-opteeReason
                13 November 2023Newry SDLP Michael SavageKillian FeehanSavage retired. [4]

                Notes

                1. The leader of Sinn Féin is Mary Lou McDonald, who sits as a TD in the Irish Dáil Éireann for Dublin Central. O'Neill is the leader of the party in Northern Ireland.

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                References

                1. "Local government elections in Northern Ireland". www.electoralcommission.org.uk. Retrieved 2022-05-19.
                2. "NI council election moved to avoid coronation clash". BBC News. 21 December 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
                3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Northern Ireland council election: List of all the candidates in the May 2023 poll". Belfast Live. 25 April 2023. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
                4. "New Councillor - Newry District Electoral Area".