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DUP confirm Edwin Poots will take Christopher Stalford's South Belfast seat

BBC Edwin Poots and Jeffrey DonaldsonBBC
Edwin Poots' move to South Belfast was confirmed by Sir Jeffrey Donaldson (right)

Edwin Poots will replace Christopher Stalford as assembly member for South Belfast, Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has confirmed.

Mr Stalford died suddenly in February at the age of 39.

Mr Poots will also stand for South Belfast in the upcoming assembly election in May.

Sir Jeffrey did not confirm whether he will replace Mr Poots in the Lagan Valley constituency.

The party leader, who is currently the MP for Lagan Valley, last year announced his intention to run as a candidate in the constituency for the assembly election.

He said: "We haven't yet completed our selection process and we will take that forward in the next few days."

Mr Poots signed the Roll of Members as the new MLA for South Belfast on Monday.

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In January, he attempted to win the DUP's nomination to stand in South Down but failed after the party nominated Diane Forsythe instead.

Mr Poots, Stormont's agriculture minister, was elected DUP leader in May 2021, beating Sir Jeffrey in a leadership contest after the ousting of Arlene Foster.

However, he resigned 21 days later with Sir Jeffrey later replacing him as party leader.

'Hard act to follow'

Mr Poots paid tribute to Mr Stalford, describing him as a "hard act to follow", and said Mr Stalford's family had asked him to consider taking the role.

"Christopher was a good local representative with good standing in this community," he said.

"We will seek to build upon the work Christopher has carried out in that time."

Pacemaker Edwin Poots and Christopher StalfordPacemaker
Mr Poots described Christopher Stalford as a "hard act to follow"

The full candidate list for the South Belfast constituency is not confirmed, but others known to be standing are:

  • Clare Bailey, Green Party
  • Paula Bradshaw, Alliance
  • Andrew Girvin, TUV
  • Deirdre Hargey, Sinn Féin
  • Kate Nicholl, Alliance
  • Stephen McCarthy, UUP
  • Matthew O'Toole, SDLP
  • Elsie Trainor, SDLP

The full candidate list for the constituency will be available to view on the BBC News NI website after nominations close on 8 April.