Counting for Northern Ireland Assembly elections starts today

Counting will begin today in Northern Ireland after voters went to the poll yesterday to elect a new Assembly.

The elections were brought about by the resignation of Deputy First Minister and IRA commander, Martin McGuinness and the refusal of Sinn Féin to put forward a replacement candidate. The convicted terrorist didn't stand due to a serious illness.

The Single Transferable Vote system is notoriously difficult to predict but early indications are that the DUP will finish with most seats but Sinn Féin will be a close second whilst UKIP could end up with one seat.

UKIP gains first Northern Irish MLA

Former Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) MLA, David McNarry, has joined UKIP and will sit in the Northern Irish Assembly as a UKIP MLA.

McNarry is the party's first member of one of the devolved governments and second elected representative in Northern Ireland after Cllr Henry Reilly was elected on a UKIP ticket in May last year.

McNarry was elected as a UUP MLA in 2003 but resigned the whip after being sacked as Vice Chair of the Assembly Education Committee at the start of the year by the UUP's previous leader.

UKIP is the only UK party to have elected representatives in all four home nations.