East Belfast MP Gavin Robinson has been elected as the new deputy leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).
Paula Bradley has been the party’s second in command since 2021 but is stepping down from the role.
Jonathan Buckley, who represents Upper Bann in the Stormont assembly, was also in the running to replace her.
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson was re-elected as party leader. DUP MPs and assembly members voted on Friday at the party headquarters in Belfast.
Sir Jeffrey thanked colleagues for renewing his mandate and said his focus remained the “restoration of Northern Ireland’s place within the United Kingdom”.
“The way forward for unionism must mean less hunting for heretics and more encouragement for converts,” he added.
“We remain focused on delivering on our plan for Northern Ireland and promoting the pro-Union message.
“Across the pro-Union community, it remains my view that there is more that unites us than divides us.”
Mr Robinson said he was honoured to be elected as the party’s deputy leader.
“A new generation of unionists are stepping forward to serve at every level within our party and in service to Northern Ireland,” he said.
“We all share the desire to play our part to help shape Northern Ireland into an even better place to live and work.”
He said he looked forward to “visiting every part of the country” and playing his part in “building and promoting the pro-Union cause as well as working to deliver on our plan for Northern Ireland”.
The DUP is blocking the normal functioning of Stormont’s power-sharing government and its legislative assembly as part of a protest against post-Brexit trade rules.
As a result of the 16-month boycott Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill has not been able to take up the post of Northern Ireland’s first minister.
Gavin Robinson’s election as the DUP deputy leader strengthens the hand of Sir Jeffrey Donaldson and will be seen as a sign that a return to Stormont is more likely if the party can secure the constitutional guarantees it wants from the Westminster government.
A victory for the challenger Jonathan Buckley would have been a bitter blow for the leadership and a signal that the internal fractures had not quite healed.
Mr Robinson is as politically close to Sir Jeffrey as it is possible to get.
He ran his leadership campaign two years ago which ended in victory for his rival Edwin Poots.
Mr Buckley, on the other hand, is close to Mr Poots and was his chief of staff for the three weeks he lasted as leader.
With this potentially tricky election safely out of the way, Sir Jeffrey can now concentrate on talks with the Conservative Party in the hope they will bear fruit soon enough to allow a Stormont return in the autumn.
The DUP, which is the second-biggest party at Stormont and is entitled to the deputy first minister role, must return to power to allow those posts to be filled.
Its boycott has also meant that civil servants have been left to run Northern Ireland’s public services amid a major budget crisis.
On Thursday Sir Jeffrey said he was hopeful of making progress in his talks with the UK government about what he required in order to agree a return to Stormont.
Source – BBC News
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