Ulster Popular Unionist Party facts for kids

The Ulster Popular Unionist Party (UPUP) was a political party in Northern Ireland. It was a unionist party, meaning it supported Northern Ireland remaining part of the United Kingdom.

The party was started in 1980 by James Kilfedder. He was an independent Unionist Member of Parliament (MP) for the North Down area. Kilfedder led the UPUP until he passed away in 1995. For a short time in 1980, the party was called the Ulster Progressive Unionist Party before changing to "Popular."

Party History

Early Elections

In the 1981 Northern Ireland local elections, the UPUP won five seats on local councils. They gained three seats on the North Down Borough Council and two seats on the Ards Borough Council. One of their councillors, Gladys McIntyre, even became the Mayor of Ards in 1985-86.

James Kilfedder also won a seat for the party in North Down during the 1982 Northern Ireland Assembly election. He later became the Speaker of the Assembly, which is like the leader of the Assembly's meetings.

Kilfedder's Parliamentary Role

Kilfedder kept his seat in the UK Parliament in the 1983 general election. He won by a large number of votes. However, he did not do as well in the 1984 European election, getting only a small percentage of the votes.

In 1986, Kilfedder easily won a special election (called a by-election) in North Down. He and other unionist MPs resigned from Parliament to protest against the Anglo-Irish Agreement. This agreement was signed between the British and Irish governments. Kilfedder then won a close election in 1987 and again in 1992.

The Party's End

The number of UPUP councillors went down to three in the 1985 local elections. It stayed at this level until James Kilfedder's death in 1995.

After Kilfedder passed away, the three remaining UPUP councillors went their separate ways. Valerie Kinghan joined the new UK Unionist Party. Thomas Jeffers joined the Democratic Unionist Party. Cecil Braniff started his own short-lived independent group. No one from the UPUP ran in the special election that happened after Kilfedder's death. This marked the end of the Ulster Popular Unionist Party.

Election Results

Here's how the Ulster Popular Unionist Party performed in different elections:

UK General Elections

Election	Seats won	±	Votes	%	±
1983	1 / 17		22,861	3.0%
1987	1 / 17		18,420	2.5%	0.5%
1992	1 / 17		19,305	2.5%

Northern Ireland Assembly Elections

Election	Seats won	±	First pref. votes	%	±
1982	1 / 78		14,916	2.3%

European Parliament Elections

Election	Seats won	±	First pref. votes	%	±
1984	0 / 81		20,092	0.1%

Local Elections

Election	Seats won	±	First pref. votes	%	±
1981	5 / 526		7,817	1.2%
1985	3 / 565	2	3,139	0.5%	0.7%
1989	3 / 565		1,223	0.2%	0.3%
1993	3 / 582		1,730	0.3%	0.1%