Northern Ireland by-elections, 1986

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The 1986 Northern Ireland by-elections were held on 23 January 1986. All fifteen sitting Unionist Members of Parliament resigned their Westminster seats in December 1985, to highlight their opposition to the Anglo-Irish Agreement and to use the resultant by-elections to campaign on the issue. These MPs, from the Ulster Unionist Party, Democratic Unionist Party and Ulster Popular Unionist Party, all recontested their seats and agreed not to stand against each other.

Of the remaining two seats in Northern Ireland, Foyle was held by the Nationalist Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), while Belfast West was held by the Republican party Sinn Féin. These MPs did not resign and their seats were not contested.

The SDLP and Sinn Féin regarded the resignations as a publicity stunt, and were reluctant to take part in the resulting by-elections. In the event, they contested only the seats which they believed to have an anti-Unionist majority.

The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland instructed its branches to nominate a candidate for each by-election, but many were reluctant, and ultimately, the party stood in only five seats. The Workers Party also stood, in eight seats.

In four constituencies, no political party was willing to contest the by-election. This effectively made these the last uncontested by-elections in British history. However, to ensure that there was a contest and the Unionists would be able to demonstrate their point, Wesley Robert Williamson changed his name by deed poll to "Peter Barry", the name of the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs. "Peter Barry" stood in these four constituencies under the label "For the Anglo-Irish Agreement", allowing a contest, but did not campaign.

The unusual circumstances led this to be the greatest number of UK Parliamentary by-elections ever held on a single day.

All but one of the Unionists were re-elected, many with extremely large majorities. The largest of all went to Ian Paisley in North Antrim. He won 97.4% of the vote, the highest percentage polled by any candidate in a UK by-election since the 1940 Middleton and Prestwich by-election (although George Currie had also exceeded this percentage in the 1959 UK general election in North Down).

The sole exception to this pattern was the Newry and Armagh by-election, where Seamus Mallon of the SDLP was able to take the seat.

The results of the fifteen by-elections were trumpeted by Unionists as a rejection of the Agreement by the Northern Irish electorate, but did not succeed in repealing it.

Contents

[edit] Results

[edit] Antrim

East Antrim by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Roy Beggs 30,386 84.9
Alliance (NI) Sean Neeson 5,405 15.1
Majority 24,981
Turnout 59.2
Ulster Unionist hold Swing N/A
North Antrim by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Unionist Ian Paisley 33,937 97.4 +43.2
"For the Anglo-Irish Agreement" "Peter Barry" 515 2.6 N/A
Majority 33,024 94.8
Turnout 54.7
Democratic Unionist hold Swing N/A
South Antrim by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Clifford Forsythe 30,087 94.1
"For the Anglo-Irish Agreement" "Peter Barry" 1,870 5.9
Majority 28,217
Turnout 53.5
Ulster Unionist hold Swing N/A

[edit] Belfast

Belfast East by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Unionist Peter Robinson 27,607 81.0
Alliance (NI) Oliver Napier 5,917 17.4
Workers Party Frank Cullen 578 1.7
Majority 21,690
Turnout 60.2
Democratic Unionist hold Swing
Belfast North by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Cecil Walker 21,649 71.5
Alliance (NI) Paul Maguire 5,072 16.7
Workers Party Seamus Lynch 3,563 11.8
Majority 16,577
Turnout 51.5
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
Belfast South by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Martin Smyth 21,771 71.3
Alliance (NI) David Cook 7,635 25.0
Workers Party Gerry Carr 1,109 3.6
Majority 14,136 46.3
Turnout 56.9
Ulster Unionist hold Swing

[edit] Down

North Down by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Popular Unionist James Kilfedder 30,793 79.2
Alliance (NI) John Cushnahan 8,066 20.8
Majority 22,727
Turnout 62.8
Ulster Popular Unionist hold Swing
South Down by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Enoch Powell 24,963 48.4
Social Democratic and Labour Eddie McGrady 23,121 44.8
Sinn Féin Hugh McDowell 2,963 5.7
Workers Party Sean Magee 522 1.0
Majority 1,842
Turnout
Ulster Unionist hold Swing

[edit] Other constituencies

Fermanagh and South Tyrone by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Ken Maginnis 27,857 49.7
Sinn Féin Owen Carron 15,278 27.2
Social Democratic and Labour Austin Currie 12,081 21.5
Workers Party David Kettyles 864 1.5
Majority 12,579
Turnout
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
Lagan Valley by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Jim Molyneaux 32,514 90.7
Workers Party John Lowry 3,328 9.3
Majority 29,186
Turnout 57.8
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
East Londonderry by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist William Ross 30,922 93.9 + 56.0
"For the Anglo-Irish Agreement" "Peter Barry" 2001 6.1 N/A
Majority 28,921 87.8 + 73.7
Turnout 32,923 46.8 - 29.5
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
Mid Ulster by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Unionist William McCrea 23,695 46.1
Sinn Féin Danny Morrison 13,998 27.2
Social Democratic and Labour Adrian Colton 13,021 25.3
Workers Party Thomas Owens 691 1.3
Majority 6,967
Turnout
Democratic Unionist hold Swing


Newry and Armagh
see Newry and Armagh by-election, 1986
Strangford by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist John Taylor 32,627 94.2
For the Anglo-Irish Agreement "Peter Barry" 1,993 5.8
Majority 30,634 88.5
Turnout 34,620 55.0
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
Upper Bann by-election, 1986
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Harold McCusker 29,311 80.8
Workers Party Tom French 6,978 19.2
Majority 22,333
Turnout
Ulster Unionist hold Swing

[edit] See also

[edit] References

« 48th Parliament «   By-elections to the 49th Parliament of the United Kingdom   » 50th Parliament »
1983

July: Penrith and the Border
1984

March: Chesterfield | May: Cynon Valley | South West Surrey | Stafford | June: Portsmouth South | December: Enfield Southgate
1985

July: Brecon and Radnor | December: Tyne Bridge
1986

January: Belfast East | Belfast North | Belfast South | East Antrim | East Londonderry | Fermanagh & South Tyrone | Lagan Valley | Mid Ulster | Newry & Armagh | North Antrim | North Down | South Antrim | South Down | Strangford | Upper Bann | April: Fulham | May: Ryedale | West Derbyshire | July: Newcastle-under-Lyme | November: Knowsley North
1987

February: Greenwich | March: Truro
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