WELL, that's the Assembly election over, for a couple of months at least. The result was hardly a surprise unless you're an SDLP or Ulster Unionist voter, in which case horror would be a more appropriate adjective.
As victorious Sinn Féin and Alliance MLAs gathered for their obligatory intake picture at Stormont, the photographer would have needed a wide angle lens to fit them all in. There were no such issues for the TUV's Jim Allister, whose party photograph could have been taken in a telephone box.
Jim admitted in a pre-election interview that if he returned to the Assembly alone, he'd view that as defeat. With that his embarrassing reality, I predict there will now be much bluster from him about the vagaries of our voting system robbing him of wins.
Not that Jim need worry too much as he'll no doubt be returning to his residency on The Nolan Show. Never in history has a politician who represents so few been given the opportunity to speak to so many so often.
The result shows that the electoral relationship between DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson and the TUV's Jim Allister didn't work out.
Donaldson had gambled that getting in bed with Jim would assuage anger among his support base about the Protocol and bring out the vote.
He was right about bringing out the vote, but mistaken about which vote. The acrimony raised by the TUV leader was such that, in many constituencies, the DUP were denied a seat as TUV transfers didn't go to the bigger party.
Indeed, it could be argued Jim Allister's legacy may be the diminishment of the DUP and Ulster Unionists and the advancement of Alliance, a party who remain agnostic on the issue of nationality. This, if played to its logical conclusion, would make a united Ireland more, rather than less, likely. Take a bow Jim Allister.
Donaldson's histrionics around what he termed 'the danger' of Sinn Féin being the largest party and taking the position of First Minister smacked of the bad old days, when then-Prime Minister Basil Brooke admitted he 'wouldn't have a Roman Catholic about the place'.
Jeffrey's dramatics caused practically every nationalist who could walk to rush to the polling stations to vote for Sinn Féin. While SDLP leader Colum Eastwood comforted himself with talk of SDLP votes only being 'loaned', history has demonstrated that once the Rubicon of voting Sinn Féin has been crossed, those voters never return. On the other side, the destruction of the 'middle ground' continued as the Ulster Unionists watched their vote haemorrhage to the Alliance party.
Sinn Féin hardly mentioned a border poll throughout the build-up to the election, no doubt aware this would leave unionists even more paranoid than usual. Michelle and Mary Lou remedied this oversight by sprinting to the cameras after the election to demand the Irish government accept the result as a precursor to a border poll.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin, however, remained a reluctant suitor, arguing the accession of Sinn Féin as the largest party was in no way indicative of the need for a poll. If it was a dating show, his rejection of the Sinn Féin ladies would have included: "It isn't that you aren't attractive, and I really like you, I really do, it's just I don't think we're compatible."
At the time of writing, Boris Johnson seems poised to renege on the Brexit deal he signed by scrapping the Protocol. While unionism will no doubt rejoice at such news, they once again fail to the recognise the unintended consequences of such a rash decision.
If NI is seen as the cause of a no-deal Brexit, then residents on the big island will blame us when the harsh realities of such an outcome become apparent. Making a united Ireland yet again... you've guessed it... more likely.
Poor Jeffrey Donaldson was the picture of misery throughout the election. His magnificent trout pout – one which any glamour model would be proud of – became so pronounced I half expected him to whistle when being interviewed.
The fact he's decided to remain in Westminster is akin to a captain jumping off a sinking ship; also, I hear the money is better over there.
The disappearance of the middle ground in the shape of the SDLP and Ulster Unionists may be the legacy of this election. Plus, we've reached a juncture where it could be argued the most effective way to ensure a united Ireland is to vote unionist.
