Sinn Féin dominates Northern Ireland with unionists in post-Brexit shambles

The Irish republican party has achieved a notable accomplishment by winning first place in three consecutive elections.

John Finucane from Sinn Fein is happy after winning re-election in the Westminster election at the Titanic Exhibition Centre counting center on July 5, 2024 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. | Charles McQuillan/Getty Images

BELFAST — Sinn Féin, the Irish political party that aims to end Northern Ireland's existence, has become the most significant influence in Britain's parliament for the region — even though its members of parliament choose not to sit there.

Sinn Féin won by a wide margin in many contests on Friday, successfully keeping all seven of its parliamentary seats. They came very close to winning an eighth seat, falling short by just 179 votes against the Democratic Unionists. The Democratic Unionists, on the other hand, experienced a significant decrease in support following the Brexit chaos, reaching their lowest level of support in 25 years.

Sinn Féin has achieved a hat trick of first-place victories in Northern Ireland. They had the most seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2022 and the most seats on local councils in 2023. Currently, they hold the most House of Commons seats among all Northern Irish parties, as the DUP has dwindled to just five seats.

This has lifted Sinn Féin's spirits after facing challenges in the Republic of Ireland. While the party has never held a government position there, they are aiming to make a significant impact in the upcoming election scheduled for later this year.

Sinn Féin's party leaders Mary Lou McDonald and Michelle O'Neill were all smiles on Friday as they celebrated the recruitment of Pat Cullen, former head of a nursing union in the U.K. The party welcomed their newest high-profile member with open arms.

The unexpected hiring of Cullen, a respected leader in British labor union politics with no previous political experience, illustrates Sinn Féin's shift under McDonald towards a more traditional left-wing agenda. This change includes moving away from its origins in the Irish Republican Army and promoting more women in leadership roles.

Cullen emerged victorious in the extensive Fermanagh-South Tyrone district, a border region where Bobby Sands, an IRA member who died while on a hunger strike in prison in 1981, was elected as a Member of Parliament. This surprising election result motivated Sinn Féin to begin participating in British elections for the very first time.

In the years that have passed since then, and especially after the IRA's cease-fires in the 1990s, Sinn Féin and unionists have made Fermanagh-South Tyrone the most closely fought constituency in the UK - but not anymore.

Cullen won by a large margin of 4,500 votes against her rival who is a moderate unionist. This victory came on Friday, despite the Democratic Unionists deciding not to run in order to make it more difficult for Sinn Féin to win.

To everyone's surprise, Sinn Féin significantly reduced the DUP's lead in areas with mostly Protestant residents, which have historically been loyal to unionist representation since Northern Ireland was established in 1921. They nearly won East Londonderry from Gregory Campbell, the DUP's longest-serving politician, with only a 179-vote difference.

The Democratic Unionists lost three constituencies that were strongly in favor of remaining in the union to other political parties. Surprisingly, they also lost North Antrim, which was considered to be their most secure seat and was originally won by the DUP's founder, Ian Paisley, back in 1970.

The Paisley family has held power in North Antrim uncontested for over five decades, but that all changed last Friday when the son of the late preacher, Ian Paisley Jr., was defeated in the election by a margin of 450 votes. The victorious candidate, Jim Allister, is a former member of the DUP who strongly criticizes Northern Ireland's peace process, as well as the DUP's recent decision to support it, believing it could lead to a united Ireland.

The political party known as the Social Democratic and Labour Party

Blog section in casual English: Northern Ireland's Alliance Party

All 650 seats have been allotted.

The Social Democratic and Labour Party, also known as the SDLP, is a political party in Northern Ireland. They have a strong focus on social justice and equality. The party works to address issues such as poverty, discrimination, and human rights abuses. The SDLP has been a key player in the peace process in Northern Ireland and continues to advocate for non-violent and democratic solutions to political conflicts. Overall, the SDLP strives to create a more inclusive and fair society for all citizens.

The Northern Ireland Alliance Party

On the other hand, Sinn Féin is gaining more followers in Northern Ireland but they are not talking much about their goal of moving the territory out of the U.K. and into the neighboring EU state. Instead, they are focusing on improving services funded by the British government, especially the National Health Service. Waiting times for specialist appointments and surgeries are especially bad in Northern Ireland, and Cullen, with her background in nursing and connections to caregivers, has promised to bring attention to this issue as an MP.

The peace agreement in Northern Ireland from 1998 includes a promise from the British government to organize a vote on Ireland's unification once it seems that most people in Northern Ireland would vote for unity. However, the new Prime Minister Keir Starmer has stated that it is very unlikely that this vote will happen during Labour's next five years in power.

However, some experts believe that Sinn Féin's increase in popularity in Northern Ireland among the expanding Catholic population is leading towards an inevitable referendum. This was further reinforced by the recent election results, which showed strong support from younger voters on the Irish nationalist side for Sinn Féin, rather than its more moderate competitor, the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), which managed to retain its two MPs.

Young people under the age of 30 in the nationalist community overwhelmingly back Sinn Féin. They admire Sinn Féin and are eager to support a party that is not aligned with the UK Parliament, according to Brian Feeney, a former SDLP politician and history teacher in Belfast who now studies Northern Irish politics.

"According to Feeney, the demographics are shifting in favor of nationalists, causing changes in Northern Ireland. He believes that East Londonderry will eventually be won by Sinn Féin, as the party continues to change the electoral map from unionist to nationalist. Feeney predicts that in the next election, Gregory Campbell or any other DUP candidate will not win the seat."

At the moment, Sinn Féin is maintaining its stance of not allowing its MPs to sit in the House of Commons, stating the need to swear allegiance to King Charles as the reason.

Yet, there are some people who believe, like Sam McBride from the Belfast Telegraph, that Sinn Féin will eventually reconsider their decision to not participate in British parliamentary politics. They may do this in order to have a stronger platform to push for a referendum on a united Ireland.

They mention Sinn Féin's gradual shift from its earlier role as a mouthpiece for the IRA, focused on toppling governments rather than leading them.

McBride stated that throughout history, Sinn Féin has abandoned many of their previous beliefs and positions, leaving behind a trail of evidence.