PoliticsSouth Antrim Report

Ulster Unionist Robin Swann comfortably regains South Antrim seat party lost in 2017

DUP’s Paul Girvan trails Swann by a margin of 7,512 votes amid an overall poor election peformance by the DUP

Newly elected Ulster Unionist MP Robin Swann (R) shakes hands with outgoing South Antrim MP Paul Girvan at Meadowbank Sports Arena, Magherafelt. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA Wire

Jack White
Fri Jul 5 2024 - 12:19

It was a comfortable victory for the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) in South Antrim, with the party regaining a seat it originally lost in 2017, thanks to “strategic thinking”.

UUP candidate and former minister for health during the Covid-19 pandemic Robin Swann comfortably took the seat of the DUP’s Paul Girvan with a margin of 7,512 votes.

His loss is a reflection of an overall poor performance from the party, having lost three seats.

South Antrim, another unionist stronghold, has seen either the UUP or the DUP at the helm for decades.

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Nothing the swinging nature of the constituency, Mr Girvan who has been an MP for the constituency since 2017, said: “The DUP have won this seat back and we haven’t went away, we will be back.”

From North Antrim originally, a former Paisley stronghold, Mr Swann was strategically placed to run in South Antrim in an effort to gain the UUP at least one seat back after failing to do so in 2019.

Party leader Doug Beattie denied the move was a gamble, saying it was “strategic thinking”.

Mr Swann said other candidates carried out a “clean and honourable” campaign, and while he thanked Mr Girvan, he said it was clear that voters “were looking for change”.

“Northern Ireland will be best served when we do have that mixture of voices in Westminster who actually take their seat and speak on behalf of all the people of Northern Ireland,” he said.

Jack White

Jack White

Jack White is a reporter for The Irish Times

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