Early tallies suggest it's very close in South Down

Early tallies suggest it's very close in South Down

9 June 2017

JUST over two hours after the polls closed, Sinn Fein and South Down officials are nervously pacing the floor at the Eikon Centre in Lisburn as the votes are being verified and counted.

The closest parliamentary election battle in South Down for three decades will go all the way to wire, with sources from both parties saying they both polled well in Downpatrick in particular.

Sinn Fein’s Chris Hazzard is hoping to make history by winning the South Down seat for the first time, while the SDLP’s Margaret Ritchie is determined to hold on to the seat the late Eddie McGrady wrestled from Ulster Unionist Enoch Powells’ grasp.

Alliance sources suggest their candidate Andrew McMurray could lose as many as 1,500 votes to the SDLP, while the DUP is confident Diane Forsythe polled extremely well and will finish ahead of Ulster Unionist Harold McKee.