DUP stalwart Sammy Wilson has been re-elected MP for East Antrim, but with a decreased majority of the vote share.
As many DUP strongholds faced challenges in this election East Antrim managed to keep voter support - but only just.
He won with 11,462 votes, a slim majority of 1,306 down from the 6,706 in 2019.
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Speaking at the count in Magherafelt the politician blamed the fractured unionist vote.
“There are seats which will be occupied in Westminster for the next five years by someone who is opposed by the many unionist ideals I adhere to. They didn’t not need to be lost. They could have been won had the unionist vote not been split.
“My message to those tonight who split the unionist vote is you ought to be ashamed. You knew what you were doing. In some cases, you made it quite clear that your chief objective was to destroy another unionist party rather than ensure that the union was secured.”
In a bruising night for the DUP the East Antrim seat was one of the safest, but with their majority dropping over 80% it could indicate a fall in support for the party.
There have been tensions since the endorsement of the Windsor Framework and the Protocol which unionists say create an Irish sea border.
East Antrim has been an historic unionist stronghold since the constituency was created in 1885, however cross community party Alliance have been steadily gathering support in the contituency in recent elections, and this one was no different.
The party had a repeat of 2019 and come home second ahead of UUP.
The party’s candidate, Danny Donnelly, received 10,156 votes while UUP MLA, John Stewart, received 9,476.
Speaking after the declaration Danny Donnelly thanked those who voted for him.
“This seat is a lot closer now and certainly we are going to grow, we are going to work hard, and we will be back,” he said.
While the margins between the top three parties were tight throughout the night, others failed to gain momentum.
Sinn Féin’s Oliver McMullan lost out on fourth place with 2,986 votes to Mathew Warwick of the TUV who received 4,135 votes.
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Margaret Anne McKillop of the SDLP received 892 votes while Green party candidate Mark Fraincis Bailey came away with 568.
The 2019 election recorded a voter turnout of 57.5%, which dropped to 54.32%.
