The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a unionist,loyalist,and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley,who led the party for the next 37 years. Currently led by Jeffrey Donaldson,it is the second largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly,and is the fifth-largest party in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The party has been described as centre-right to right-wing and socially conservative,being anti-abortion and opposing same-sex marriage. The DUP sees itself as defending Britishness and Ulster Protestant culture against Irish nationalism and republicanism. It is also Eurosceptic and supported Brexit.
James Hugh Allister,is a British Unionist politician and barrister in Northern Ireland. He founded the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) political party in 2007,leading the party since its formation. Allister has served as a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for North Antrim since 2011,and is the TUV’s only representative in the Assembly.
Samuel Wilson is a Northern Irish politician,serving as Chief Whip of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) in the House of Commons since 2019. Wilson has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for East Antrim since 2005. He served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Belfast East from 1998 to 2003 and for East Antrim from 2003 until 2015. He served as Lord Mayor of Belfast from 1986 to 1987 and again from 2000 to 2001,the first person from the DUP to hold the office. He has also served as Minister of Finance and Personnel and Minister of the Environment in the Northern Ireland Executive.
David Hilditch was a Northern Irish Unionist politician representing the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). Hilditch was a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for East Antrim from 1998 until his retirement on health grounds in 2023.
Edwin Poots is a British politician in Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from May to June 2021. He was first elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) in 1998. Poots is the DUP's Spokesperson for Institutional Reform and Hard to Reach Communities.
Jim Wells is a Northern Ireland politician,formerly of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP),who was a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for South Down from 1998 to 2022;he was one the longest serving MLAs in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Wells is also a former Deputy Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly,and was a councillor on Down District Council from 2001 to 2011.
Richard James Shannon is a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician in Northern Ireland. He has sat in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom since 2010 as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Strangford and is the DUP's Health Spokesperson. He had previously sat in the Northern Ireland Assembly from 1998 to 2010 as the Member of the Legislative Assembly of Northern Ireland (MLA) for Strangford. He is an advocate for Leave Means Leave,a pro-Brexit campaign.
DaithíGerard McKay is a newspaper columnist and former Irish politician. He was the Chair of the Finance Committee in the Northern Ireland Assembly and a Sinn Féin MLA for North Antrim for 9 years. He brought forward legislation that led to the introduction of a Carrier Bag Levy in Northern Ireland and the abolishment of rates for Community Amateur Sport Clubs.
The Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. In common with all other Northern Irish unionist parties,the TUV's political programme has as its sine qua non the preservation of Northern Ireland's place within the United Kingdom. A founding precept of the party is that "nothing which is morally wrong can be politically right".
Basil McCrea is a former Northern Irish politician. He was the party leader of NI21 from 2013 until it disbanded in 2016. He was also a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for Lagan Valley from 2007 to 2016.
The fourth Northern Ireland Assembly was the unicameral devolved legislature of Northern Ireland following the 2011 assembly election on 5 May 2011. This iteration of the elected Assembly convened for the first time on 12 May 2011 in Parliament Buildings in Stormont,and ran for a full term.
Jamie Bryson is an Irish Political activist in Ireland who originally attracted media attention as a leading figure in the Belfast City Hall. He is the author of four books a monthly newsletter and online site. He also runs a consultancy business focusing on loyalist public relations,legal work and advocacy.
Douglas Ricardo Beattie is a Northern Irish politician and former member of the British Army,who has been leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) since 27 May 2021. He has been a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for Upper Bann since 2016. He is characterised as a 'progressive' and 'liberal' unionist.
Emma Little-Pengelly is a Northern Irish barrister and Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician. She has been a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Lagan Valley since 12 May 2022 when she was co-opted to replace DUP party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson who declined to take up his seat after being elected at the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election to remain in the House of Commons. Little-Pengelly is the DUP's Spokesperson for the Executive Office,Legacy and Human Rights. She previously served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Belfast South constituency in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from 2017 until 2019,when she lost her seat to Claire Hanna of the SDLP,and as an MLA for the Belfast South constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.
The 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election was held on 5 May 2022. It elected 90 members to the Northern Ireland Assembly. It was the seventh assembly election since the establishment of the assembly in 1998. The election was held three months after the Northern Ireland Executive collapsed due to the resignation of the First Minister,Paul Givan (DUP),in protest against the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Events from the year 2021 in Northern Ireland.
Events from the year 2022 in Northern Ireland.
Diane Forsythe is a Northern Irish politician who is a Democratic Unionist Party Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). She was elected as an MLA in the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election for South Down as the first female unionist to represent the area. Forsythe is the DUP's Spokesperson for Communities,Childcare and Early Years.
Alan Robinson is a Unionist politician from Northern Ireland representing the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP),he is the party's Spokesperson for Senior Citizens.
Local elections were held in Northern Ireland on 18 May 2023. The elections were delayed by two weeks to avoid overlapping with the coronation of King Charles III. Following the elections,Sinn Féin became the largest party in local government for the first time. It also marked the first time that nationalist parties had garnered a greater share of the vote than unionist parties.
