Sinn Féin's general secretary Mitchel McLaughlin has decided to switch from his Foyle constituency in Derry and seek a first Assembly seat for the party in the predominantly unionist constituency of South Antrim in the elections scheduled for next March.
Mr McLaughlin, in a surprise move, last night put his name forward at a selection convention to stand in the constituency. It will be a gamble for Mr McLaughlin and Sinn Féin as there is no guarantee that he will win the seat.
Party election strategists, however, based on the last Assembly election figures, believe that Mr McLaughlin can build on Sinn Féin's current base support in South Antrim and take a seat.
In the last Assembly elections in 2003 Sinn Féin's Martin Meehan, a former senior IRA figure, came close to taking the seat of Alliance leader David Ford. In a famous television moment he even claimed to have won the seat before the official result was declared. However, Mr Ford, with unionist transfers, managed to hold on, 180 votes ahead of Mr Meehan.
Another of his opponents in the next Assembly elections could be DUP MP for South Antrim the Rev William McCrea, who is also expected to switch his Assembly seat, currently in Mid-Ulster, to South Antrim.
In the 2003 Assembly election Mr Meehan won 4,295 first preferences against 3,393 for Mr Ford. In the Westminster election last year, which Mr McCrea won, Sinn Féin candidate Henry Cushinan increased the party vote to 4,407 votes while Mr Ford's votes decreased to 3,278.
At present the DUP and Ulster Unionist Party hold two seats each in South Antrim.
