| Electorate | Seats | Total Poll | Turnout | Valid Poll | Spoiled Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 75,685 | 1 | 51,082 | 67.49% | 50,893 | 189 |
Vote Distribution
Left Right
| Candidate | 1 |
|---|---|
|
|
20328 |
|
|
17882 |
|
|
8867 |
|
|
2002 |
|
|
1814 |
Democratic Unionist Party
First timer Diane Forsythe is replacing veteran DUP man and former Stormont minister Jim Wells as the party candidate, although she has no previous political experience. The Kilkeel woman is a mother-of-three, a keen runner and plays in a pipe band. Her father Glyn Hanna is a member on Newry, Mourne and Down District Council. DUP leader Arlene Foster said she would have all the "experience and know-how" of Jim Wells behind her.
Sinn Fein
Former Minister for Infrastructure Chris Hazzard was co-opted to the Northern Ireland Assembly at the age of 27 to replace Willie Clarke in 2012. He retained his seat in 2016 when he joined the Northern Ireland Executive. The MLA was re-elected in the constituency in March 2017. Mr Hazzard, from Drumaness, is completing a PhD at Queen’s on Irish political dynamics in the post-war era.
Ulster Unionist Party
Former MLA Harold McKee from Kilkeel was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in May 2016 and sat on the Committee for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. He lost his seat to Sinn Fein in the snap Assembly election earlier this year. The former councillor stood unsuccessfully for election to Westminster in 2015. A former quarry manager and farmer, he opposed the introduction of a National Park for the Mournes.
Alliance Party
The Alliance Party selected Castlewellan man Andy McMurray as its newest councillor for Newry, Mourne and Down District Council to represent the Slieve Croob area in 2016. Mr McMurray, who is married with two children, is an outdoor instructor and youth worker at the Ardnabannon Outdoor Education Centre.
Social Democratic and Labour Party
A former parliamentary assistant and political researcher to then MP for South Down, Eddie McGrady, and a former Down District councillor, Margaret Ritchie was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2003 and again in 2007 when she was appointed Minister for Social Development - the sole SDLP member of the then Northern Ireland Executive. She resigned her Stormont seat in 2012 after she was elected as MP for South Down in 2010. She was returned as MP for the area in 2015. A former SDLP leader, she has served as a member of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee in Westminster.
