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You are here Home | Topics | Election 2005
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November 03, 2005
In Their Own Words
By now, the election of 2005 and the various party campaigns have been well analysed. However, just when you were starting to forget about it an Ulster Unionist staff member has produced a book telling us all the (excruciatingly painful) details from the inside of Cunningham House. While we all wait for the book to hit the shelves it is being helpfully serialised by the Belfast Telegraph. [more] June 09, 2005
Election 2005: the issues that never showed...
The Election Commission's post election seminar took place at Queens just under a fortnight ago. It brought together a number of players from NI's political and civil society to look at what might be learned from the experience of this year's double election. I was asked to present a highly personal view of the main issues and outcomes of the campaign, which was followed by a fascinating series of presentations from each of the five main parties' directors of elections. [more] June 07, 2005
DUP win a mandate for 'politics of opposition'
Chris Gilligan had a piece in Spiked Magazine a few weeks back which argued that the recent DUP success was based on long term strategy of opposition. Thus far they have enjoyed the fruits of that strategy, but he holds up the halt in Sinn Fein's democratic advance as an example of how a prolonged political hiatus can damage a party which had previously been able to galvinise its own constituency's sense of alienation. [more] May 20, 2005
As Bill Shankly would say - it's more important than that...
Jude Collins in Daily Ireland uses Football analogies in his musings on the results of the recent elections - Who’ll be relegated next season? [more] May 19, 2005
Why the Tories remain in a v big hole!
Excellent analysis from Ciaran O'Kelly on the election patterns in Britain. It confirms what I'd already suspected: ie that the Conservatives largely owe their improved seat total to an effective Lib Dem counterattack on Labour over the issue of Iraq. That doesn't necessarily augur well for the Lib Dems next time out: they are in second place in many areas where they don't have an historical presence. But what O'Kelly underlines is the work the Conservatives will have to do to move from Howard's consolidating agenda to one that appeals to 60% of the UK electorate that seems to be losing interest in them. Adds: for the upbeat version see Iain Murray's analysis. May 16, 2005
The rise of 'Green' politics in Ireland
Connor McMorrow with an overview of the rising fortunes of the Green Party, written just before the party's island-wide conference in Cork at the weekend. Party leader in the Dail Trevor Sargent ruled out the possibility of joining Fianna Fail in any future coalition. May 13, 2005
Post election Hearts and Minds...
Hearts and Minds worth watching for a number of things. One, watch the four cornered debate at the beginning. I may have heard something wrongly, but I'm fairly sure there's a row at one point because one speaker (Dermot Nesbitt, I think) believes that one of his rivals got to make a point and he also wanted to make it. It's possibly what made the next item a blessed relief. It features Lynda Gilbey and Eammon McCann on what keeps them going when they have little realistic hope of election. And, there's a musical farewell to David Trimble. Good analysis on same from Fionnuala O'Connor. May 12, 2005
After another failed siege of Derry?
Malachi O'Doherty considers the qualitative difference between the two main nationalist parties after the SDLP's (to some of us) surprise fightback. He asks which of them will take the decisive initiative in the next round of political contests. If it is Sinn Fein, he argues, it will need to move away from its traditional revolutionary position and, in effect, become an new SDLP Lite. [more] May 11, 2005
Didn't vote? Tell us why?
The Not Apathetic website takes up cudgels on behalf of those who didn't vote this time out. If you were one of the fanatically apathetic, then you can make your mark here. Does the internet matter in politics? I was just discussing this subject with a colleague, when Jane at Slugger Central sent me a link to this piece on the BBC website: Was this an internet election? For journalists, the answer is "no". For web junkies, it's "of course". And for electors? Well, that may be the most interesting question. [more] UUP insiders planning a corporate leadership? Eeek! It seems that some inside the UUP are planning a corporate leadership to take over from Trimble, according to Dan McGinn. Alex Kane is against such a plan: [more] Is the secret ballot really secret? There's a fascinating conversation going on under the Allegations of malpractice thread, in which the question is being asked, is there any possiblity that the current system might allow anyone to trace who voted for which party. This memorandum on the UK Parliament website is well worth checking out. The Guardian says it is possible. Thanks to Harboy and Occasional Commenter for the links! [more] The role of competition in future developments Vincent Browne with a fascinating analysis (subs needed) that's as well read in full (at the moment we don't have permission from author or paper to replicate more than we have). He extolls the virtue of renewed competition in Nationalism, though interestingly not Unionism. [more] Allegations of voting malpractice... Spring has sprung and the first cuckoo has been heard. The Newsletter carries a report that Upper Bann MLA Dolores Kelly MLA has alleged that Sinn Féin were guilty of electoral malpractice, a charge that is lent some credence by comments reported from the electoral office and denied by a SF spokesman in Upper Bann. Illegal Vote Tricks Used By SF Says MLA Kelly [more] SDLP hasn't gone away you know... I'd heard Tom Kelly was going to kick off this week's column with an echo of Gerry Adams' "thank you Mr Eastwood", after collecting a tidy sum on several otherwise unfavoured SDLP horses. Instead he goes for a quick round up of the landscape as seen from the SDLP's viewpoint. He blames the British, and in particular Tony Blair's NI point man in No 10 Jonathan Powell for hanging Trimble out to dry. [more] Crime, but any punishment..? MARK Durkan can afford to allow himself a little dig at the critics, after defying the pundits with the general election performance of the SDLP (I had them on two seats, so humble pie for me on that count). He also finds himself strengthened enough within his party to dismiss all notions of a merger with any party in the Irish Republic, particularly Fianna Fail. [more] Trimble has his say... ON Spotlight earlier, former unionist leader and ex-MP David Trimble told the BBC that the Government had contributed to a shift in public opinion by failing to hold republican to account. Other problems were the "failure to get the Agreement properly implemented and, in particular, the failure of the republican movement to do their side of the bargain, and that was decommissioning and disbandment". [more] May 10, 2005
Trimble will be well judged by history
Paul Bew said on radio yesterday that David Trimble had ridden his luck for longer than he could have expected but that it ran out decisively on Thursday last. Today Maurice Hayes argues that although Trimble is seen as today's victim, history will judge him more kindly than some of his more successful contemporaries. [more] Ford: Trimble's act was truly historic There's probably not a great deal of love lost been the Alliance leader David Ford and David Trimble, but the latter was fulsome in his praise of the UUP leader's achievements: After the moribund years of the 80s and early 90s, David Trimble had the vision and the political courage to lead his party, and a large section of this community, to reaching the Good Friday Agreement. That was truly historic. It is a tribute to Mr Trimble's work that even the DUP has now accepted the Agreement in all but name. In time, I believe that David Trimble's contribution to Northern Ireland will be widely recognised.Councillor wins seat after his withdrawal Beano over at Everything Ulster draws our attention that one UUP councillor got elected in Lisburn, even though he stood down in the last weeks of the election campaign. European Parliament to vote on McCartney tonight Richard Delevan has been tracking some of the turns around a motion debated yesterday in the European Parliament. The parliament votes on the resolution tonight. Sinn Fein surge slowing down? Daily Ireland leads today with the headline: DUP, SF surge on. There has been a certain amount of misreading of the Pottinger result as a poke in the eye for Sinn Fein (they actually picked up 75% of the Short Strand vote), yet the overall pattern of voting has much more subtle message for the party. Whilst the Protestant middle classes are clearly being wooed by the new DUP's advances to them, Sinn Fein appear to be approaching a glass sealing. It can be seen in this graphic from today's Irish News: the DUP's surge amounts to an increase of 8%, whilst the Sinn Fein advance is limited to 3%. Tall order facing Peter Hain There were moans of disguntlement when Slugger told several political back office workers last Friday that Peter Hain was going to split his Northern Irish post with his 'other job' as Secretary of State for Wales. At his post-resignation press conference, David Trimble was far from sanguine about the possibilities of success. [more] Slugger blogger tops poll in Omagh Yep, after nearly three years of trying to prosleytise the art of blogging amongst the political classes north and south of the border, we finally have an elected politician blogger. He's the DUP's poll topping councillor in Omagh District Council Clive McFarland and one of Slugger's panel of politico bloggers. We've no idea whether Clive's blogging alacrity had some bearing on his election, but we wish him well in his future political career! Adds: it seems that Clive was beaten to that particular accolade by Marion Smith, Bangor's UUP blogging councillor! Thanks Howard!! May 09, 2005
NIO ministers announced. Ho hum...
THREE new ministers have been appointed to the Northern Ireland Office by Prime Minister Blair. The BBC got the scoop. [more] DUP spot 'guerrilla' in the midst... JUST homing in on Ballymena for a second, and things should be interesting in the Ardeevin council chambers when the new council meets. The DUP has regained control in Paisley's adopted hometown - but for the first time ever, the Democratic Unionists will have to deal with a Sinn Fein member in their midst. [more] Decide the next leader of the UUP? The UUP executive meets on Saturday, to decide whether to call a meeting of the UUC, to decide who Trimble's successor is. Thanks to reader Tim, you can beat them to it by virtually voting for the next leader of the UUP. Even more impressively, you can do so using proportional representation! Was Slugger right? It doesn't do to trumpet an accurate forecast too loudly, but this one on Slugger from last February is worth re-visiting briefly. In light of the Westminster results it highlights the success of Sinn Fein in limiting the damage to its election campaign - from the McCartney murder and the Northern Bank raid. Although it also seems the 'yellow vote' (of the as yet uncaptured middle classes) was indeed shaken rather than stirred by events earlier this year. David Trimble's successes and failures Alex Kane's now famous/notorious column from Saturday's Newsletter, which he wrote and sent in on the morning of the election - ie when he was blind to the end result. It looks like he got what he wanted. David Trimble didn't resign first thing on Saturday, but he was gone in time to make the 5pm news. [more] May 07, 2005
Godson's take on Trimble...
WRITING in the Times today, Trimble biographer Dean Godson notes a number of issues that led to the UUP leader's downfall. He believes Trimble was taken for granted, by both the British and Irish Governments, and by nationalists. But perhaps Godson needs to ask why so many nationalists who shored up Trimble's vote (and others) in the past felt they couldn't do so again this week. [more] |
Slugger O'Toole records news, commentary and diverse opinion on Northern Ireland. Produced by Mick Fealty News, tips or crits here: mick.fealty -at- gmail.com Topics a long peace?books Britain Conflict Culture Economy Education election 2003 Election 2005 Enviroment environment Europe Gaeilge Glossary Government Highlights Human Rights Humour International Manifesto Media Nationalism Negotiations Parties Policing Soapbox Society Sport the south unionism
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Out with the crystal ball...Just a Mo... Commenting Policy A backgrounder on the McCartney affair Northern Bank raid and political fallout, so far
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