North Down

Map by Conal Kelly

This constituency was much cut down from the old North Down. Most of the old North Down constituency survived as the new North Down after 1995, with some territory exchanged with Strangford. The MP elecetd in 1983 was Jim Kilfedder (UPUP), re-elected in 1986, 1987 and 1992 and knighted in 1992. He died in 1995 and the resulting by-election was won by Bob McCartney (UKUP) who had previously contested the seat under two different labels in 1983 and 1987.

See spreadsheets for 1983, 1987 and 1992.

Election results, 1983-1995

15 June 1995

Bob McCartney (UK Unionist Party) 10124 (37.0%)
Alan McFarland (Ulster Unionist Party) 7232 (26.4%)
Sir Oliver Napier (Alliance) 6970 (25.4%)
Alan Chambers (Independent Unionist) 2170 (7.9%)
Stuart Sexton (Conservative) 583 (2.1%)
Michael Brooks (Free Para Lee Clegg) 109 (0.4%)
Christopher Carter (Ulster's Independent Voice) 101 (0.4%)
James Anderson (Natural Law Party) 100 (0.4%)

UK Unionist Party (UPUP) majority: 2,892; Electorate: 70,875; Turnout: 33.8%

My personal account of the 1995 by-election.

9 April 1992

Jim Kilfedder (Ulster Popular Unionist Party) 19,305 (42.9%)
Laurence Kennedy (Conservative Party) 14,371 (32%)
Addie Morrow (Alliance Party of Northern Ireland) 6,611 (14.7%)
Denny Vitty (Democratic Unionist Party) 4,414 (9.8%)
Andrew Wilmot (Natural Law Party) 255 (0.6%)

Ulster Popular Unionist Party (UPUP) majority: 4,934; Electorate: 68,662; Turnout: (65.5%)

11 June 1987

Jim Kilfedder MP (Ulster Popular Unionist Party) 18,420 (45.1%)
Bob McCartney (Real Unionist) 14,467 (35.4%)
John Cushnahan (Alliance Party of Northern Ireland) 7,932 (19.4%)

Ulster Popular Unionist Party (UPUP) majority: 3,953; Electorate: 65,044; Turnout: 63.0%

23 January 1986

@Jim Kilfedder MP (Ulster Progressive Unionist Party) 30,793 (79.2%)
@John Cushnahan (Alliance Party of Northern Ireland) 8,066 (20.8%)

Ulster Progressive Unionist Party (UPUP) majority 22,727; Electorate 64,278; Turnout 60.6%

9 June 1983

@Jim Kilfedder MP (Ulster Popular Unionist Party) 22,861 (56.1%)
@John Cushnahan (Alliance Party of Northern Ireland) 9,015 (22.1%)
@Bob McCartney (Ulster Unionist Party) 8,261 (20.3%)
Cathal Ó Baoill (Social Democratic and Labour Party) 645 (1.6%)

Ulster Popular Unionist Party (UPUP) majority: 13,846; Electorate: 61,574; Turnout: 66.2%

See also:

Results from 1983 to 1995 for each seat: East Belfast | North Belfast | South Belfast | West Belfast | East Antrim | North Antrim | South Antrim | North Down | South Down | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Foyle | Lagan Valley | East Londonderry | Mid Ulster | Newry and Armagh | Strangford | Upper Bann

Other sites based at ARK: ORB (Online Research Bank) | CAIN (Conflict Archive on the INternet) | Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey

Your comments, please! Send an email to me at nicholas.whyte@gmail.com.

Nicholas Whyte, 21 October 2000; modified 16 February 2002.