Ulster unionist Party deputy leader Mr John Taylor MP last night comfortably survived a bid to unseat him as party candidate for the next Westminster Election.
The Strangford MP fought off a determined challenge by former constituency chairman Mr Jim Hamilton. After a two-hour meeting in Newtownards last night, Mr Taylor said tip proved the UUP was the true "democratic unionist party".
"I am happy that I won. I am always sorry someone has to loose but that's politics. I think that if I had lost it would have reflected badly on the whole leadership of the Ulster unionist Party."
The defeated candidate, Mr Hamilton, said that he had wanted to give the voters of Strangford a choice. "John Taylor hasn't been challenged on previous occasions and I wanted to give the people an opportunity to have a choice," he said.
Mr Taylor, who has been MP for Strangford since 1983, defeated Mr Irish Robinson of the Democratic Unionist Party by almost 6,000 votes in the 1997 general election.
But a DUP spokesman said last night the Strangford seat was winnable, considering the massive swing to his party in last month's by-election.
"I would say that the seat is very open, the spokesman said. "When you consider the turnover in South Antrim, all things are possible."
Mr Taylor said that he had fought off challenges from the DUP in the past and would do so again.