Who is popular today?

Sinn Féin is polling strongly in the Northern Ireland Assembly elections and is on track to be the largest party at Stormont, usurping the DUP, and in line to take the First Minister post.
The other main headline of the election so far is that the centre-ground Alliance Party is also performing well and likely to see its number of seats reaching double figures, after entering the election with eight seats.
You can follow the results as they are announced on our liveblog.
The DUP, which was the largest party in the last Assembly with 28 seats, appeared in danger of dropping a couple or possibly more seats.
Sinn Féin is likely to at least hold the 27 seats it won in the last Assembly elections and is therefore in position for the party leader in the North, Michelle O’Neill, to be next First Minister.
However, there is great uncertainty over whether a new Northern Executive can be formed. DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson, who was elected in Lagan Valley, has said there can be no new administration until the Northern Ireland protocol issue is resolved. It also remains unclear as to whether the DUP would serve in an Executive where it held the Deputy First Minister post.
The DUP lost a considerable amount of its vote share to the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) party. Mr Donaldson said a key lesson for unionism is that it “simply cannot afford the divisions that exist”.
“There are seats that might be lost because of divisions, despite that, the common ground we share, whether it is our belief in the union or our opposition to the Irish sea border and the protocol,” he said.
Naomi Long, who topped the poll in East Belfast, said it was “a good day so far for Alliance” which could see its representation increase by four and possibly more seats.
The SDLP, which entered the election with 12 seats, was under pressure in at least three seats, including that of its sole Minister, Nichola Mallon, in North Belfast.
The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), which had 10 seats, also appeared in danger of losing some representation. There also was a question mark over the seat of party leader Doug Beattie in Upper Bann.
‘All to play for’
After DUP leader Mr Donaldson refused to say whether he will return to Stormont after he was has been elected as MLA for Lagan Valley following the first count.
Speaking after the result, Mr Donaldson insisted it was “all to play for” in terms of the final result.
He secured 12,626 votes and said one of the messages from the election was that a “divided unionism does not win votes”.

DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson after he was elected for the Lagan Valley constituency at Ulster University Jordanstown count centre. Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA Wire


When asked if he will return to the Assembly, he said: “Let’s see what final outcome is.
“There is all to play for. The DUP is very much in the game at the moment. I have made it clear we need the government to take decisive action on the protocol. Words are not enough.”
He added: “In terms of the overall picture it is much too early to say what the final outcome might be.
“I think it is going to be very tight at the end as to who will emerge as the largest party.”
Mr Donaldson’s running mate is former first minister Paul Givan, who collapsed the executive in February after he resigned in protest over the Northern Ireland Protocol.
The DUP leader said he was looking forward to Mr Givan – who polled 5,062 first-preference votes – being elected later once his votes had been transferred.
Ms O’Neill, Sinn Féin vice-president, was surrounded by party colleagues and supporters as the result of her re-election was announced in the Magherafelt count centre.
She received 10,845 first preference votes and the result was greeted by large cheers in the count centre.
Speaking to reporters shortly before her election was announced, Ms O’Neill said she was “very grateful” to be with the people of Mid-Ulster.
Asked about the possibility of her taking the first minister role, she said: “It is very early to say, let’s get all the votes counted. “I feel very positive.”
She said that Sinn Féin wanted to “together work in partnership with others”.
“That is the only way we will achieve much, much more for people here, whether in terms of the cost-of-living crisis or trying to fix our health service.”
Ms Long, speaking in Belfast, dedicated her victory to her father-in-law. “It’s been a good day so far for Alliance and obviously it’s been a good day for me personally in East Belfast, and also for Peter McReynolds, and we expect that we will hold the two seats there.
“It’s been quite an emotional election campaign for me. I lost my father-in-law in the last few weeks, and we buried him yesterday.
“I just want to dedicate this win to him, because without family I could not do what I do, and without their support I would not be where I am.
“I am just absolutely thrilled that I’ve polled so well and I really look forward to later on today and seeing all my colleagues bringing it home.”
Earlier on Friday, the first MLA elected to the Stormont Assembly declared an Alliance Party surge.

Alliance Party candidate Kellie Armstrong (left) celebrates with her party leader Naomi Long at the Titanic Exhibition Centre in Belfast. Photograph: Liam McBurney/PA Wire


Kellie Armstrong was elected for the Strangford constituency on the first stage of the count with 7,015 votes.
Congratulated by party leader, Ms Long, Ms Armstrong said it was the start of a surge for the party in the Assembly elections.
“I’m absolutely delighted,” Ms Armstrong said. “I’ve held back using the word surge until now but I think I’m feeling it now. I’m absolutely delighted to top the poll.
“I’m not going to say a tidal wave at this moment in time, because we’ve a long time to go yet, but it’s amazing and it’s being shown in the vote today.”
The DUP and Sinn Féin are vying for top spot at Stormont, which comes with the entitlement to nominate the next first minister.
A unionist party has always taken the most seats in the Assembly, and previously the Stormont Parliament, since the formation of the state in 1921.
While the office of the first and deputy first minister is an equal one with joint power, the allocation of the titles is regarded as symbolically important
Independent
Alex Easton, formerly of the DUP, topped the poll in North Down with 9,568 votes and insisted he will continue his “journey” as an Independent unionist candidate.
Mr Easton from the North Down constituency resigned from the DUP last summer and there was intense speculation he would return to the party in the event of an Assembly victory to prevent Sinn Féin becoming the largest party.

Independent candidate Alex Easton (centre) after he was elected at Ulster University Jordanstown count centre in Newtownabbey. Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA Wire


Responding to media queries yesterday about such a move – he has eight days to make a decision – Mr Easton said: “I will continue my journey as a unionist candidate and MLA for North Down.
“I enjoy serving my constituency. I like delivering on the ground.
“I won the seat on the hard work that I do and I will be representing North Down as an independent MLA.”
Earlier this year, Mr Easton said he quit the DUP as he didn’t feel valued and was only “rolled out for elections”.
Northern Ireland protocol
The Northern Ireland protocol has cast a long shadow over the election campaign, following the resignation of Mr Givan in February in an effort to force the UK Government to act over the post-Brexit trading arrangements.
This action left the Executive unable to fully function.
While ministers remained in post, they were restricted in the actions they could take. Unionists object to the additional checks on goods arriving in Northern Ireland from Britain as a border in the Irish Sea.
SDLP leader Colum Eastwood appeared to play down expectations for his party as he arrived at Magherafelt.
He said that voters may have “lent” their vote to Sinn Féin. “It’s going to be a long day and maybe a long night as well,” he told the PA news agency.
“I think there has been a big vote for Sinn Féin on the nationalist side.
“People decided to send a very clear message that nationalists should not be locked out of the first minister position. I understand that motivation and I think a lot of people have lent Sinn Féin their vote.”
But Mr Eastwood said votes were still being counted. “It is going to be tough for us, because so many people have wanted to send a message to the DUP that nationalists shouldn’t be locked out of the top position,” he said.
Asked about the elections in Northern Ireland, UK prime minister Boris Johnson said “the most important thing is that we continue to support the balance of the Good Friday Agreement across all communities in Northern Ireland”.
Speaking during a visit to a school in his constituency of Uxbridge and South Ruislip, he was asked by reporters about the possibility of a majority of people in Northern Ireland voting for parties that support the current trading arrangements with the EU, and if he will work with those parties to make the Northern Ireland Protocol work
Mr Johnson said: “The most important thing is that we continue to support the balance of the Good Friday Agreement across all communities in Northern Ireland. That’s what we’re going to do.
“And whatever arrangements we have, they have got to have cross-community support, that’s what the Good Friday Agreement is all about, that’s what the Government is going to do.
“But as for the rest, we’ll have to wait and see what the results are in Northern Ireland.”
Seats
Five Assembly seats are up for grabs in each of the 18 constituencies.
Northern Ireland uses the single transferable vote (STV) proportional representation electoral system.
The DUP won 28 seats at the last Assembly elections in 2017, just ahead of Sinn Féin which returned 27 MLAs.
Next was the SDLP with 12 seats, the Ulster Unionist Party with 10 seats, Alliance with eight seats, the Green Party with two seats while People Before Profit and the TUV had one MLA each.
This year, the DUP has been regarded as playing it safe, running 30 candidates, while Sinn Féin is running 34.
Meanwhile, the UUP is running 27 candidates, the Alliance Party is running 24, the SDLP is fielding 22, TUV is putting up 19 candidates, the Green Party is running 18 and People Before Profit 12, as is Aontu, while the Workers Party is running six candidates and the PUP three.
The Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP) and the Socialist Party are each fielding two candidates while the Northern Ireland Conservatives, Cross Community Labour Alliance (CCLA), Resume NI and Heritage Party are each running one candidate.
There are 24 independent candidates. – Additional reporting PA