1998 Northern Ireland Assembly election
The 1998 Northern Ireland Assembly election took place on Thursday, 25 June 1998. This was the first election to the new devolved Northern Ireland Assembly. Six members from each of Northern Ireland's eighteen Westminster Parliamentary constituencies were elected by single transferable vote, giving a total of 108 Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs).
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All 108 seats to the Northern Ireland Assembly | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Turnout | 69.8% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Election results. Voters elect 6 assembly members from the 18 constituencies. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Results
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| Party | Votes | % | +/– | Seats | +/– | |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party | 177,963 | 21.96 | +0.6 | 24 | +3 | |
| Ulster Unionist Party | 172,225 | 21.25 | -2.9 | 28 | -2 | |
| Democratic Unionist Party | 145,917 | 18.01 | -0.8 | 20 | -4 | |
| Sinn Féin | 142,858 | 17.63 | +2.2 | 18 | +1 | |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland | 52,636 | 6.50 | 0.0 | 6 | -1 | |
| UK Unionist Party | 36,541 | 4.51 | +0.8 | 5 | +2 | |
| Independent Unionist | 24,339 | 3.00 | N/A | 3 | +3 | |
| Progressive Unionist Party | 20,634 | 2.55 | -1.0 | 2 | – | |
| Northern Ireland Women's Coalition | 13,019 | 1.61 | +0.6 | 2 | – | |
| Ulster Democratic Party | 8,651 | 1.07 | -1.1 | – | -2 | |
| Labour Party of Northern Ireland | 2,729 | 0.34 | New | – | – | |
| Workers' Party (Ireland) | 1,989 | 0.25 | -0.3 | – | – | |
| Northern Ireland Conservatives | 1,835 | 0.23 | -0.3 | – | – | |
| Ulster Independence Movement | 1,227 | 0.15 | -0.4 | – | – | |
| Natural Law Party | 832 | 0.10 | 0.0 | – | – | |
| Socialist Party | 789 | 0.10 | New | – | – | |
| Green Party of Northern Ireland | 710 | 0.09 | -0.4 | – | – | |
| Independent | 5,392 | 0.67 | N/A | – | – | |
| Total | 810,286 | 100.00 | – | 108 | – | |
| Valid votes | 810,286 | 98.39 | ||||
| Invalid/blank votes | 13,248 | 1.61 | ||||
| Total votes | 823,534 | 100.00 | ||||
| Registered voters/turnout | 1,178,556 | 69.88 | ||||
Result by constituencies
The result was (first preference votes only):[1]
Details
Although the SDLP won the most first preference votes, the Ulster Unionists won the most seats in the Assembly. This has been attributed to several reasons, including:
- Slightly different turnouts across the province, with the result that in the more staunchly unionist east fewer votes were required to elect an MLA than in the SDLP's heartlands in the west.
- The Ulster Unionists proved better at "vote balancing" whereby in the rounds of transfers their candidates were less likely to be eliminated earlier on.
- The Ulster Unionists proved better at attracting transfers from other parties (and due to the vote balancing mentioned above, were more likely to be in a position to benefit from this)
See also
References
- "Northern Ireland Assembly Elections 1998". Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
Manifestos
- It's Time For Tomorrow... Together, Alliance
- Your Best Guarantee for the Future of Northern Ireland, Democratic Unionist Party
- A Fresh Future, Northern Ireland Conservatives
- A New Voice For New Times, Northern Ireland Women's Coalition
- For Real Change – Building a New Ireland, Sinn Féin
- Now, Say Yes To A Future Together, Social Democratic and Labour Party
- Together Within the Union, Ulster Unionist Party
- Manifesto of The Workers' Party, Workers' Party
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