By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal
LONDON (AA) – Voters in Northern Ireland are going to polling stations across the country to choose new representatives in 11 councils on Thursday.
More than 800 candidates are in the electoral race to fill 462 seats in the delayed election, which was rescheduled from May 4 due to the coronation of King Charles III held on May 6.
Around 1.4 million voters are eligible to cast their votes.
The election results will be significant as the political stalemate in forming a local government, known as the Executive, continues as the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) rejects to nominate a deputy First Minister due to concerns over the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Sinn Fein, the Irish nationalist party that won the most seats in the last parliamentary election, has nominated party leader Michelle O’Neill as the first minister after a historic victory in May 2022, winning a majority of 27 seats in Stormont, making it the first nationalist party to take control of the assembly in its century of existence.
According to the Northern Ireland-specific law and the latest election result, a power-sharing devolved government can only be formed under an agreement between Sinn Fein and the DUP.
The DUP is defending 122 council seats in Thursday’s vote and Sinn Fein is trying to raise the seat number from 105.
Polling stations opened at 7 a.m. (0600GMT) and they will close at 10 p.m. local time (2100GMT) and the vote count will start Friday morning.