The North: Political Parties

1
The North Political Parties
2
Reading

• Tonge (2002) Northern Ireland conflict and
  change, ch. 4
• Mitchell and Wilford Politics in Northern Ireland
  ch. 5 on parties, 4 on electoral systems

3
The Party System

• Separate from the British party system
• The centrality of religious identity
• Two major Unionist and two major Nationalist
  parties

4
An ethnic party system?

• an intrinsic feature of ethnic party systems is
  the constant threat of a politics of ethnic
  outbidding by rival parties within each bloc
  parties in each bloc often attempt to outdo each
  other in terms of ethnic intransigence and
  increased polarisation is the net result
• Paul Mitchell in Politics in Northern Ireland
  (eds Mitchell and Wilford), p.114
• The extremes overtake the moderates

5

• The Agreement was always certain to consolidate
  sectarianism in that it established a system
  based on striking a balance between the wishes
  and interests of the two communities. This
  ensured that the battle within each community
  concerned which party could be counted on to
  vindicate and advance its interests vis-a-vis the
  interests of the other side.
• Eamonn McCann, Belfast Telegraph, 2005.

6
Northern Ireland Assembly Elections
7
DUP Democratic Unionist Party

• Rev. Ian Paisley
• Peter Robinson
• Jeffrey Donaldson
• Rural and Religious
• Urban and working-class

8
(No Transcript)
9
UUP Ulster Unionist party

• David Trimble
• The Party of Unionist Unity
• Linked to the Orange Order
• Conservative and Labour
• A liberal wing

10
(No Transcript)
11
Other Unionist Parties

• Progressive Unionist Party (PUP)
• United Kingdom Unionist Party (UKUP)

12
SDLP Social Democratic and Labour Party

• Mark Durkan
• (Formerly John Hume and Seamus Mallon)
• A broad alliance
• Officially a Socialist party
• Identity problems

13
(No Transcript)
14
Sinn Féin

• Gerry Adams
• Martin McGuiness
• Gerry Kelly
• Associated with the IRA
• Rapid growth
• Urban working-class
• Rural support
• Leftist and Conservative

15
(No Transcript)
16
Other Nationalists and Republicans

• Irish Republican Socialist Party
• Republican Sinn Féin
• Sinn Féin dissidents
• The emerging dissident Republican challenge to
  Sinn Féin
• Independent nationalists

17
Alliance

• David Ford
• Declining vote
• Unionist with a small u

18
Other Parties

• Labour
• Socialist Environmental Alliance (SEA)
• Northern Ireland Green Party
• Independents

19
Voting Patterns

• Unionism consolidated
• Nationalism united
• A shrinking middle ground
• A narrow Unionist majority

20
Changing Voting Patterns
21
Electoral Systems

• PR-STV
• First past the post in Westminster elections