Northern Ireland

West Belfast: Gerry Carroll tops the poll

People Before Profit's Gerry Carroll has topped the poll in West Belfast. Picture by Alan Lewis, Photopress
People Before Profit's Gerry Carroll has topped the poll in West Belfast. Picture by Alan Lewis, Photopress People Before Profit's Gerry Carroll has topped the poll in West Belfast. Picture by Alan Lewis, Photopress

WHEN Gerry Carroll received just shy of 20 per cent at the Westminster election last year, he predicted that socialism was on the rise.

The People Before Profit candidate came an impressive second with 6,798 votes, knocking the SDLP, which held the seat as recently as the 1990s, into third.

Early talk on Friday was that he may be elected to the assembly on the first count.

Few probably expected he would do as well as he did - winning a massive 8,299 to top the poll.

Many people see the rise of the self-styled 'revolutionary socialist' as a indication that constituents are becoming increasingly frustrated with Sinn Féin and its record in government.

Sinn Féin won five seats here last time, with the SDLP picking up the sixth.

The turnout in the constituency was 57.80 per cent.

Sinn Féin is again expected to do well again and all its candidates were within a few hundred of the quota after the first count - Rosie McCorley with the most ground to make up.

The SDLP's Alex Attwood picked up 2,647, a long way off the quota of 5,182.

The DUP's Frank McCoubrey is in with an outside chance 3,766, although it was difficult to predict after the first stage where he might pick up transfers.