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DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson secured a strong win in Lagan Valley but said he will only return to Stormont when the British government tackles the Northern Ireland protocol.
Mr Donaldson – who is an MP for the area but has yet to resign his Westminster seat – was elected on the first count in the Assembly election, taking 12,626 votes.
He said one of the messages from the election was that a “divided unionism does not win votes”.
When asked if he will return to the Assembly with Sinn Féin potentially taking the First Minister office, 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 was former first minister Paul Givan, who collapsed the executive in February after he resigned in protest over the Northern Ireland Protocol. Mr Givan was elected on the third count.
North Down
Elsewhere, Alex Easton topped the poll in North Down with 9,568 votes and insisted he will continue his “journey” as an Independent unionist candidate.
Easton 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.
Responding to media queries about such a move – he has eight days to make a decision – Mr Easton dismissed it: “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.”
While there were concerns about the Ulster Unionist Party vote overall, the party’s Robin Swann topped the poll in North Antrim while UUP deputy leader Robbie Butler retained his seat in Lagan Valley, getting elected on the second count.
‘Big lift’
Mr Swann, who served as the Stormont health minister during the pandemic, said he will be back at his desk on Monday morning as a “caretaker health minister”.
He told The Irish Times his victory was a “big lift” for the party.
“To go from 6,000 votes in 2017 to 9,530 today is a big day for us. The last time an Ulster Unionist topped the poll was in 1966, before I was born,” he said. “But I will be back at my desk on Monday. Decisions need to be made on a cancer strategy, elective care... and we need a recurrent budget.”
Sinn Féin’s Declan Kearney romped home and was elected on the first count for South Antrim with 9,185 votes while the party’s Philip McGuigan retained his seat in North Antrim, polling 9,348 first preference votes.
As the Alliance vote surged across the North, Sorcha Eastwood was elected to Lagan Valley on the fourth count while the party’s John Blair retained his seat in South Antrim.