Northern Ireland local elections, 1997
Encyclopedia
Elections for local government
were held in Northern Ireland
on 21 May 1997, shortly after the 1997 general election across the entire United Kingdom.
Local government in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is divided into 26 districts for local government purposes. In Northern Ireland local councils do not carry out the same range of functions as those in the rest of the United Kingdom, for example they have no responsibility for education, for road building or for housing...
were held in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
on 21 May 1997, shortly after the 1997 general election across the entire United Kingdom.
Overall
| Party | Councillors | Votes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | +/- | % share | Total | ||
| 185 | -12 | 28 | 175,036 | ||
| 120 | -7 | 21 | 130,387 | ||
| 74 | +23 | 17 | 106,934 | ||
| 91 | -12 | 16 | 99,651 | ||
| 41 | -3 | 7 | 41,952 | ||
| 23 | +3 | 4 | 23,695 | ||
| 7 | +6 | 2 | 12,051 | ||
| 15 | -6 | 2 | 10,376 | ||
| 1 | +1 | 1 | 3,380 | ||
| 4 | +4 | 0.5 | 2,945 | ||
| 3 | +2 | 0.4 | 2,774 | ||
| 3 | -3 | 0.4 | 2,634 | ||
| 3 | -1 | 0.4 | 2,450 | ||
| 0 | -1 | 0.4 | 2,348 | ||
| 2 | +2 | 0.3 | 1,905 | ||
| Newtownabbey Ratepayers Newtownabbey Ratepayers Association The Newtownabbey Ratepayers' Association was a minor political party operating in Newtownabbey, Northern IrelandIt has contest elections for Newtownabbey Borough Council from 1997 to 2005 and registered as a political party with the Electoral Commission in 2001.The party had 2 councillors elected... |
+2 | 2 | 0.2 | 1,424 | |
| 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 706 | ||
| 1 | 0 | 0.1 | 560 | ||
| Community Labour | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 464 | |
| Upper Bann Labour | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 353 | |
| 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 71 | ||
| 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 67 | ||
Belfast
| Court Court (District Electoral Area) Court is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the west of the city, the district elects five members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Crumlin; Glencairn; Highfield; Shankill and Woodvale... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| Hugh Smyth Hugh Smyth Cllr Hugh Smyth is a former leader of the Progressive Unionist Party. He is a long-serving member of Belfast City Council and former Lord Mayor of Belfast. He is also the longest-serving member of the council, having represented the Upper Shankill areas since 1973... |
3,070 | ||
| Eric Smyth Eric Smyth Eric Smyth is a unionist politician and religious minister in Northern Ireland.Smyth was first elected to Belfast City Council for the Democratic Unionist Party in 1981, representing 'Area F' which was equivalent to the modern wards of Falls, Clonard, Blackstaff and Shaftesbury... |
1,573 | ||
| Frank McCoubrey Frank McCoubrey Frank McCoubrey is a Unionist politician and loyalist in Northern Ireland, as well as a community activist and researcher. He is a leading member of the Ulster Political Research Group and a member of Belfast City Council, representing the Court area... |
1,200 | ||
| Fred Cobain Fred Cobain Fred Cobain, MBE is a Unionist politician from Northern Ireland and was a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly from 1998 until 2011.Cobain was first elected to Belfast City Council in 1985. He served as Lord Mayor of Belfast in 1990-1991... |
1,048 | ||
| Chris McGimpsey | 800 | ||
| Glenn Bradley | 513 | ||
| Joe Coggle | 407 | ||
| Dennis Robinson | 237 | ||
| Margaret Serris | 208 | ||
| Linda Walker | 150 | ||
| John Roberts | 144 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
9,350 | ||
| Ulster Democratic Ulster Democratic Party The Ulster Democratic Party was a small loyalist political party in Northern Ireland. It was established in June 1981 as the Ulster Loyalist Democratic Party by the Ulster Defence Association to replace their New Ulster Political Research Group... gain from Independent Unionist Independent Unionist See also Independent .Independent Unionist has been a label sometimes used by candidates in elections in the United Kingdom, indicating a support for Unionism, retaining the unity of the British state.... |
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| Pottinger Pottinger (District Electoral Area) Pottinger is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the east of the city, the district elects six members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Ballymacarrett; Bloomfield; Orangefield; Ravenhill; The Mount and Woodstock.The wards of Ravenhill... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| Sammy Wilson Sammy Wilson Samuel Wilson is a politician from Northern Ireland who is a Member of Parliament and a Member of the Legislative Assembly for East Antrim. He served as Lord Mayor of Belfast in 1986 – 1987; and again from June 2000 to June 2001. He was the first person from the Democratic Unionist Party ... |
2,265 | ||
| Reg Empey Reg Empey Reginald Norman Morgan Empey, Baron Empey of Shandon, OBE, – known as Sir Reg Empey prior to 2011 – is a former Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party and Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for East Belfast... |
2,309 | ||
| David Ervine David Ervine David Ervine was a Northern Irish politician and the leader of the Progressive Unionist Party .-Biography:... |
2,110 | ||
| Dominic Corr | 978 | ||
| Mervyn Jones | 870 | ||
| Margaret Clarke | 768 | ||
| Robert Clelland | 605 | ||
| Marga Foley | 309 | ||
| Alexander Gordon | 262 | ||
| Andrew Muers | 251 | ||
| Robert Girvan | 169 | ||
| Pearl Sagar Pearl Sagar Pearl Sagar is a former politician in Northern Ireland.Brought up a Protestant, Sagar became a social worker in East Belfast, and married a soldier in the British Army.... |
149 | ||
| Frank Leslie | 142 | ||
| Joseph Bell | 115 | ||
| Josephine Challis | 21 | ||
| David Collins | 19 | ||
| Sean McGouran | 19 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
11,361 | ||
| Progressive Unionist Progressive Unionist Party The Progressive Unionist Party is a small unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979... gain from Democratic Unionist Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the... |
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| Victoria Victoria (District Electoral Area) Victoria is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the east of the city, the district elects seven members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Ballyhackamore; Belmont; Cherryvalley; Island; Knock; Stormont; and Sydenham... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| David Alderdice David Alderdice David King Alderdice is a former Lord Mayor of Belfast, and a senior member of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland. He was elected to North Down Borough Council representing Holywood on 5 May 2005 and retired in July 2010.... |
2,419 | ||
| Ian Adamson Ian Adamson Cllr Ian Adamson OBE is a former Lord Mayor of Belfast. He is a member of the Ulster Unionist Party and is a retired medical doctor.A serving Councillor on Belfast City Council from 1989 until 2011, Adamson was Lord Mayor in 1996.... |
2,367 | ||
| Jim Rodgers | 1,508 | ||
| Wallace Browne | 1,485 | ||
| Robin Newton Robin Newton Robin Newton is a Unionist politician for the Democratic Unionist Party in Northern Ireland. He is an MLA for East Belfast. Newton was sworn in as a Junior Minister within the Office of First and deputy First Minister on 1 July 2009... |
1,036 | ||
| Danny Dow | 1,024 | ||
| John McQuillan | 915 | ||
| Glyn Roberts | 553 | ||
| Margaret McKenzie | 523 | ||
| Alan Crowe | 519 | ||
| Lesley Donaldson | 256 | ||
| Peter Weir Peter Weir (politician) Peter Weir MLA is a Northern Ireland unionist politician.A past chairman of the Young Unionists , Weir is a barrister by profession. He attended Bangor Grammar School and graduated from the Queen's University of Belfast in Law and Accountancy. He was called to the Northern Ireland Bar in 1992 and... |
192 | ||
| Thomas Mullins | 25 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
12,822 | ||
| Independent Unionist Independent Unionist See also Independent .Independent Unionist has been a label sometimes used by candidates in elections in the United Kingdom, indicating a support for Unionism, retaining the unity of the British state.... gain from Ulster Unionist Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland... |
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| Balmoral Balmoral (District Electoral Area) Balmoral is the most southern of nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The district elects six members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Blackstaff; Finaghy; Malone; Musgrave; Upper Malone and Windsor... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| Margaret Crooks | 2,329 | ||
| Carmel Hanna Carmel Hanna Carmel Hanna MLA is a Northern Irish politician. She is a member of the SDLP and was MLA for South Belfast from 1998 to 2010.-Early life and nursing career:... |
1,916 | ||
| Catherine Molloy | 1,047 | ||
| Tom Ekin Tom Ekin Tom Ekin is a politician and business owner in Northern Ireland.Ekin joined the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland and was elected to Belfast City Council at the Northern Ireland local elections, 1997. From 2000 until 2002, he served as the Chairperson of Alliance.Ekin held his seat with an... |
971 | ||
| Philip McGarry | 958 | ||
| Bob Stoker Bob Stoker Bob Stoker is a Ulster Unionist Party politician and former Member of the Northern Ireland Forum for South Belfast.He was elected to Northern Ireland Forum for Belfast South in May 1996.... |
949 | ||
| Harry Smith | 924 | ||
| Joan Parkes | 654 | ||
| Heather Calvert | 520 | ||
| Gordon McCrea | 397 | ||
| Gordon Lucy | 304 | ||
| Nuala Bradley | 236 | ||
| Mary Ringland | 92 | ||
| Hubert Mullan | 71 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
11,368 | ||
| Social Democratic and Labour Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party is a social-democratic, Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. Its basic party platform advocates Irish reunification, and the further devolution of powers while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom... gain from Democratic Unionist Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the... |
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| Castle Castle (District Electoral Area) Castle is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the north of the city, the district elects six members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Bellevue; Castleview; Cavehill; Chichester Park; Duncairn and Fortwilliam... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| Nigel Dodds Nigel Dodds Nigel Alexander Dodds, OBE, MP, BL is a barrister and Northern Irish unionist politician. He is Member of Parliament for Belfast North, and deputy leader of the Democratic Unionist Party. He has been Lord Mayor of Belfast twice, and from 1993 has been General Secretary of the DUP... |
2,081 | ||
| Alban Maginness Alban Maginness Alban Maginness is a Nationalist politician in Northern Ireland.Maginness was born in Holywood, County Down, Northern Ireland. He completed his secondary education at St. Malachy's College, Belfast. He then attended the New University of Ulster and subsequently Queen's University of Belfast where... |
1,781 | ||
| Tom Campbell | 1,417 | ||
| Danny Lavery | 1,362 | ||
| David Browne | 1,134 | ||
| Nelson McCausland Nelson McCausland Nelson McCausland, MLA is a unionist politician from Northern Ireland. He is the current Minister for Social Development in the Northern Irish Government.-Education:... |
1,065 | ||
| John Carson John Carson (politician) John Carson is a former Northern Ireland Ulster Unionist Party politician.A draper who owned a shop in the interface area of the Duncairn Gardens in north Belfast, Carson was elected to Belfast City Council in 1973. The following year he was elected as a member of the United Ulster Unionist... |
1,025 | ||
| Jim Crothers Jr | 778 | ||
| Jonathan Stephenson Jonathan Stephenson Jonathan Stephenson is a former Irish nationalist politician.Stephenson was elected to Belfast City Council at the Northern Ireland local elections, 1993, representing the Social Democratic and Labour Party in the Castle area. He also became Deputy Chairperson of the SDLP in the mid-1990s.In... |
720 | ||
| Raymond Gilliland | 216 | ||
| Eileen Calder | 149 | ||
| Robert Ferris | 85 | ||
| Alan Warren | 73 | ||
| Paul Treanor | 53 | ||
| Norman McClelland | 8 | ||
| Andrea Gribben | 5 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
11,952 | ||
| Alliance Alliance Party of Northern Ireland The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland is a liberal and nonsectarian political party in Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's fifth-largest party overall, with eight seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly and one in the House of Commons.... gain from Ulster Unionist Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland... |
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| Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970... gain from Social Democratic and Labour Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party is a social-democratic, Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. Its basic party platform advocates Irish reunification, and the further devolution of powers while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom... |
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| Oldpark Oldpark (District Electoral Area) Oldpark is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the west of the city, the district elects six members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Ardoyne; Ballysillan; Cliftonville; Legoniel; New Lodge and Water Works... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| Mick Conlon | 2,317 | ||
| Bobby Lavery | 2,230 | ||
| Martin Morgan Martin Morgan Martin Morgan is a former Northern Irish politician for the Social Democratic and Labour Party .Married to Dympna, a double graduate from the Queen's University of Belfast and a qualified Master's Level Social Worker, Morgan was a political activist from his teenage years onwards.A former... |
1,941 | ||
| Paddy McManus | 1,773 | ||
| Billy Hutchinson Billy Hutchinson Billy Hutchinson is the leader of the Progressive Unionist Party in Northern Ireland. He was elected to Belfast City Council in 1997 and to the Northern Ireland Assembly in 1998. He lost his assembly seat in 2003 and his council seat in 2005... |
1,582 | ||
| Fred Proctor | 1,316 | ||
| Fred Rodgers | 986 | ||
| David Smylie | 659 | ||
| Paddy Baird | 427 | ||
| Dympna O'Hara | 365 | ||
| Peter Emerson | 245 | ||
| Mark Long | 177 | ||
| Steven Doran | 109 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
14,127 | ||
| Progressive Unionist Progressive Unionist Party The Progressive Unionist Party is a small unionist political party in Northern Ireland. It was formed from the Independent Unionist Group operating in the Shankill area of Belfast, becoming the PUP in 1979... gain from Ulster Unionist Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland... |
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| Laganbank Laganbank (District Electoral Area) Laganbank is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the south of the city, the district elects five members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Ballynafeigh; Botanic; Shaftesbury; Stranmillis and Rosetta... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| Alasdair McDonnell Alasdair McDonnell Dr Alasdair McDonnell is an Irish politician, Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party and both a Member of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and a Member of the Legislative Assembly for South Belfast. On 5 November, 2011, he was elected as the new leader of the SDLP.-Early... |
1,614 | ||
| Sean Hayes | 1,388 | ||
| Jim Clarke | 1,337 | ||
| Steve McBride Steve McBride (politician) -Career:McBride is active in the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland . He became the Chairman of APNI in the 1990s, and in 1996 was elected to the Northern Ireland Forum, representing Belfast South. At the 1997 general election, McBride took 12.9% of the vote and fourth place in the Westminster seat... |
1,118 | ||
| Michael McGimpsey Michael McGimpsey Michael McGimpsey MLA is an Ulster Unionist Party Member of the Legislative Assembly for Belfast South who has twice served in the Northern Ireland Executive... |
966 | ||
| Peter O'Reilly | 902 | ||
| Ernie Purves | 644 | ||
| Jim Kirkpatrick Jim Kirkpatrick Jim Kirkpatrick is a Unionist politician who has represented the Ulster Unionist Party three times and the Democratic Unionist Party twice. He sat in the 1982 Assembly and is currently a Belfast City councillor for the UUP.... |
473 | ||
| Anne Campbell | 406 | ||
| Patrick Lynn | 160 | ||
| Andrew Frew | 138 | ||
| James Anderson | 18 | ||
| Vincent McKenna | 12 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
9,176 | ||
| Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970... gain from Social Democratic and Labour Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party is a social-democratic, Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. Its basic party platform advocates Irish reunification, and the further devolution of powers while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom... |
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| Upper Falls Upper Falls (District Electoral Area) Upper Falls is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the west of the city, the district elects five members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Andersonstown; Falls Park; Glen Road; Glencolin; and Ladybrook. Upper Falls forms part of the... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| Alex Attwood Alex Attwood Alex Attwood, MLA is an Irish politician, currently serving in the Northern Ireland Executive, and is the Social Democratic and Labour Party MLA for Belfast West.... |
2,855 | ||
| Alex Maskey Alex Maskey Alex Maskey is an Irish politician who was the first member of Sinn Féin to serve as Belfast's Lord Mayor. He is Sinn Féin's longest sitting councillor and is currently an MLA for South Belfast as well as being a councillor for the Laganbank area of Belfast.-Early life:Maskey was educated at St... |
2,807 | ||
| Michael Browne | 2,580 | ||
| Martin Livingstone | 2,394 | ||
| Chrissie McAuley | 1,738 | ||
| Stephen McGowan | 616 | ||
| Patricia Lewsley Patricia Lewsley Patricia Lewsley is the current Commissioner for Children and Young People for Northern Ireland. She was previously a member of the Northern Irish Assembly for Lagan Valley, and a councillor in Lisburn City Council.... |
596 | ||
| David McNerlin | 201 | ||
| James McAllister | 110 | ||
| Dan McGuinness | 85 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
13,982 | ||
| Sinn Féin Sinn Féin Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970... gain from Social Democratic and Labour Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party is a social-democratic, Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. Its basic party platform advocates Irish reunification, and the further devolution of powers while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom... |
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| Lower Falls Lower Falls (District Electoral Area) Lower Falls is one of the nine district electoral areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Located in the west of the city, the district elects five members to Belfast City Council and contains the wards of Beechmount; Clonard; Falls; Upper Springfield; and Whiterock. Lower Falls forms part of the... |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | 1st Pref | |
| Fra McCann Fra McCann Fra McCann is an Irish politician. McCann became active in the Irish republican movement and during the 1970s was jailed on a number of occasions... |
2,420 | ||
| Sean McKnight | 2,286 | ||
| Tom Hartley Tom Hartley Tom Hartley is a historian and Irish republican politician.Hartley grew up in the Falls Road area of Belfast and became a republican activist in the late 1960s. In 1970, he was imprisoned in the Crumlin Road gaol for ten months for riotous behaviour; he was again imprisoned in 1978... |
2,022 | ||
| Marie Moore | 1,810 | ||
| Margaret Walsh | 1,764 | ||
| Janice Austin | 1,274 | ||
| John Lowry John Lowry For the 19th-century baseball player, see John Lowry .John Lowry is the General Secretary of the Workers' Party in Ireland. He is a native of the Lower Falls area of Belfast.... |
468 | ||
| Mary White | 227 | ||
| Keith Jacques | 45 | ||
| Turnout Voter turnout Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s... |
12,316 | ||
| No change | |||