Some parties, such as
Sinn Féin and the
Workers' Party, are organised on an all-
Ireland basis. Others such as the
Conservative Party are organised on an all-United Kingdom basis. There are many Northern Ireland-specific parties and these, on the whole, predominate.
The distinction between "
unionist/
loyalist", "
nationalist/
republican" and "other" is not always easy with some parties and individuals. Some have defined themselves less by their position on the "
Border Question" than on other political issues.
For example, the former
Republican Labour Party/
Social Democratic and Labour PartyMPGerry Fitt's career suggests he was first and foremost a
socialist rather than a nationalist and he eventually left the SDLP claiming it had drifted from its founding intentions. Similarly the
Workers' Party has its roots in the republican
Official IRA but nowadays is considered to be a non-violent
socialist and nationalist party. Several parties strive to be avowedly non-
sectarian and would not consider themselves to be either unionist or nationalist. The
Northern Ireland Assembly requires
MLAs to designate themselves either "Unionist", "Nationalist" or "Other." This is a designation that is particularly resented by those who designate as "Other", as they have no input on who becomes First or Deputy First Minister.
There are some who see the terms "Unionist"/"Loyalist" and "Nationalist"/"Republican" as being of more relevance to the community that the party seeks to represent rather than the position on the border question. Several of the "Other" parties strive to be non-sectarian but have a clear position on the border.
Political parties with elected representation at a local, national, UK or European level
UK Labour has historically had a policy not to stand in Northern Ireland. Until recently it was not possible for residents to even join the party; however this was changed on legal advice. An officially recognised branch party was set up in 2003. SDLP MPs unofficially take the Labour whip.
The
Liberal Democrats currently have a policy not to stand in Northern Ireland but to support their sister party, the Alliance Party, with many holding dual-membership, and Alliance peers take the Liberal Democrat whip.
Candidates for unregistered parties may choose either to be listed as "Non-Party", or to leave the section blank on the ballot paper, in the same manner as independent candidates.
^A frequent mistranslation is "Ourselves Alone" from Sinn Féin Amháin, an early 20th-Century slogan.
^The current party known as Sinn Féin broke from the party then known as Sinn Féin in 1970 and was initially commonly referred to as Provisional Sinn Féin.
^Margaret Ritchie, leader of the SDLP from 2010–11, has sat in the Lords since 2019 as a
Labour peer, resigning from the SDLP to do so.
^In the Northern Ireland Assembly, the party's
MLAs sign the register as "socialist" when asked if they are "unionist" or "nationalist", resulting in an official designation of "Other". However, People Before Profit is in favour of Irish reunification.
^Since 2007, Fianna Fáil has been officially registered in Northern Ireland, but has not formally fielded any election candidates as of yet, despite members passing motions to at successive
árdfheiseanna.[36]Ógra Fianna Fáil launched cumainn (branches) at
QUB and
UU in the same year. From 2019 to 2022, it was in partnership with the SDLP.[37]
^Jarrett, Henry (2016). "The Single Transferable Vote and the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland". Representation. 52 (4): 311–323.
doi:
10.1080/00344893.2017.1301987.
S2CID157208657. This could be achieved by, for example, adopting a more conservative position than Alliance's centre-left liberalism...
^Nordsieck, Wolfram (2017).
"Northern Ireland/UK". Parties and Elections in Europe.
Archived from the original on 7 November 2016. Retrieved 28 September 2018.
^
abcdefNordsieck, Wolfram (2017).
"Northern Ireland/UK". Parties and Elections in Europe.
Archived from the original on 7 November 2016. Retrieved 28 September 2018.
Hearne, Rory (May 2015).
"The Irish water war"(PDF). Interface: A Journal for and About Social Movements. 7 (1): 309–321. Retrieved 9 April 2022. Right2Water involves a number of small trade unions (Unite, Mandate, the Communications Worker's Union, the CPSU and OPATSI), as well as the Left parties of Sinn Fein and the united front organisations of two Trotskyist parties (People Before Profit and the Anti Austerity Alliance), and the Workers' Party........The 'Campaign against the Household and Water Taxes' involved socialists from the far left Trotskyist parties
Browne, Harry (13 February 2020).
"Irish voters reject the Right: a new opportunity for the Left?". Retrieved 7 April 2022. a loose historically-trotskyist alliance called "Solidarity – People Before Profit" (S-PBP), some affiliated to the Committee for a Workers International's successor International Socialist Alternative, and others to the Cliffite International Socialist Tendency
Browne, Harry (13 February 2020).
"Irish voters reject the Right: a new opportunity for the Left?". Retrieved 7 April 2022. a loose historically-trotskyist alliance called "Solidarity – People Before Profit" (S-PBP), some affiliated to the Committee for a Workers International's successor International Socialist Alternative, and others to the Cliffite International Socialist Tendency
^"Archived copy"(PDF).
Archived(PDF) from the original on 4 July 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2020.{{
cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
link)
^Edwards, Aaron (2007). "Democratic Socialism and Sectarianism: The Northern Ireland Labour Party and Progressive Unionist Party Compared". Politics. 27 (1): 24–31.
doi:
10.1111/j.1467-9256.2007.00275.x.
S2CID145393084.
^George Taylor; Brendan Flynn (2008).
"The Irish Greens". In E. Gene Frankland; Paul Lucardie; Benoît Rihoux (eds.). Green Parties in Transition: The End of Grass-roots Democracy?. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 97.
ISBN978-0-7546-7429-0.
Archived from the original on 26 December 2018. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
^John Barlow; David Farnham; Sylvia Horton; F.F. Ridley (2016).
"Comparing Public Managers". In David Farnham; Annie Hondeghem; Sylvia Horton; John Barlow (eds.). New Public Managers in Europe: Public Servants in Transition. Springer. p. 19.
ISBN978-1-349-13947-7.
Archived from the original on 26 December 2018. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
^Trumbore; Owsiak (2019). "Brexit, the Border, and Political Conflict Narratives in Northern Ireland". Irish Studies in International Affairs. 30: 195.
doi:
10.3318/isia.2019.30.12.
S2CID214476378.
^Routledge Handbook of European Elections. Edited by Donatella M.Viola. Published by Routledge. First published in 2016, in Oxon, United Kingdom. Accessed via Google Books.
*
Co-operative Party candidates stand jointly with the Labour Party. †Sinn Féin have elected members and offices at Westminster, but as
abstentionists do not take their seats.