Belfast battleground: The Sinn Féin election machine almost pulled off a spectacular coup in Belfast, nearly winning eight seats in the four constituencies having run nine candidates.
It took votes and seats at the expense of the SDLP in West Belfast and the Women's Coalition in South Belfast among others. It is the largest party in the city, beating the two main unionist groupings. The unionist battle was decisively won by the Democratic Unionists who picked up seven seats including a vital final seat in West Belfast.
Mrs Diane Dodds's victory there, without reaching the quota, was of enormous symbolic importance given that it denied Sinn Féin a fifth seat. It could also prove of enormous practical importance - the claim of that same seat by a strong anti-Agreement unionist could well prove pivotal in the formation of any new Assembly and in the fight to put forward a nomination for First Minister.
The Ulster Unionists held on to seats in North Belfast, South Belfast and performed well in East Belfast where they kept their two seats.
Early on Thursday it appeared likely that Sinn Féin could achieve its pre-election ambition of eight seats across the city including five seats in the republican stronghold of West Belfast alone.
The first preference tally showed remarkable voter discipline with all four Sinn Féin candidates sitting within 1,000 votes of each other and the party president on 6,199. Mr Adams's surplus went to those running mates on the lower first preference totals ensuring they were kept in the count.
It was the unforeseen elimination of Dr Joe Hendron, rather than Mr Alex Attwood whom Sinn Féin had targeted, which passed on vital transfers to Mrs Dodds leaving Ms Ramsey bottom of the list and therefore eliminated. She needed some 87 more votes to remain in the race and to pick up the final seat sub-quota.
Both Sinn Féin and SDLP election workers predicted that the DUP seat would be lost in a future election. It was a productive election for Sinn Féin as the party was also able to bring in new faces and help establish others for future elections.
Mr Fra McCann and Mr Michael Ferguson in West Belfast and Ms Kathy Stanton in North Belfast are now established as Assembly figures, while Mr Alex Maskey, Sinn Féin's first Lord Mayor of the city, has successfully carved out a toehold in South Belfast.
Ms Bairbre de Brún, the party's candidate in next June's European election, also performed well in West Belfast and underscored her position as a strong republican election performer.
The DUP, in common with elsewhere in Northern Ireland, gathered in the anti-Agreement protest vote at the expense of independents and smaller parties. Nowhere was this more evident than in North Belfast where Mr Nigel Dodds, the area's MP, drew well over 9,000 votes ensuring election on the second count of running mate Mr Nelson McCausland, and damaging the chances of other unionists. This cut off the path for candidates like Mr Fraser Agnew of the two-member anti-Agreement United Unionist Coalition. It also damaged the prospects of Mr Billy Hutchinson, one of only two pro-Agreement Progressive Unionists in the former Assembly. He won 1,358 first preferences, not enough to sustain him in the later counts and he was eliminated.
The SDLP, having suffered so much at the hands of Sinn Féin in West Belfast, saw an increased vote in South Belfast where their two outgoing Assembly members were re-elected.
The party vote also went up in East Belfast but not to a level which would promise a quota in future Assembly elections. The Ulster Unionists have reason to be pleased with their retention of a single seat in North Belfast, and two seats in both South and East Belfast.
Mr Fred Cobain held on against the DUP tide in North Belfast, while in east Belfast the party performed well with Sir Reg Empey winning just over 20 per cent of the vote and bringing in Mr Michael Copeland who replaced the outgoing Mr Ian Adamson who was not selected.
It was a similar story in South Belfast with the UUP senior negotiator Mr Michael McGimpsey topping the poll and returning alongside Mr Esmond Birnie.