History
For the history of the equivalent constituencies prior to 1950 please see Down (UK Parliament constituency) and from 1950 until 1983, please see North Down (UK Parliament constituency).
The constituency is overwhelmingly unionist, with the combined votes for nationalist parties rarely exceeding 10%. However there have been significant votes for parties outside the traditional unionist block, such as the Alliance and the Conservatives, whilst the UK Unionist Party has also polled well here, challenging the two main unionist parties. At the local level independent council candidates have polled well.
The main interest in elections has been the contest between the Ulster Unionist Party and the Democratic Unionist Party. Until 2001 the UUP were clearly ahead of the DUP in the Westminster elections, but elections to regional assemblies and local government were much closer. In 2001 the sitting MP John Taylor stood down and the contest to succeed him was fierce. The seat was won by Iris Robinson for the Democratic Unionist Party and the subsequent 2003 assembly election saw the DUP increase their vote further. There is scepticism as to whether the UUP can retake the seat, though the proposed boundary changes may alter matters.
Read more about this topic: Strangford (UK Parliament Constituency)
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