Unity (Northern Ireland)

"Unity" was the political label for a series of electoral pacts by

Irish nationalist Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...

Irish Republican Irish republicanism ( ga, poblachtánachas Éireannach) is the political movement for the unity and independence of Ireland under a republic. Irish republicans view British rule in any part of Ireland as inherently illegitimate. The develop ...

and

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

candidates in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

elections in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It also contested elections as a party in its own right, electing six councillors in the 1973 local council elections in the Fermanagh and Dungannon areas, although this was reduced to two members of Fermanagh council in the next election in 1977. The first victory came in 1969 in the Mid Ulster by-election which was won by 21-year old student

Bernadette Devlin Josephine Bernadette McAliskey (née Devlin; born 23 April 1947), usually known as Bernadette Devlin or Bernadette McAliskey, is an Irish civil rights leader, and former politician. She served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Mid Ulster in North ...

. She held her seat in the 1970 general election, when Fermanagh and South Tyrone was won by her colleague Frank McManus. Due to realignments in nationalist politics and opposition to Devlin's radical political and social views, both lost their seats in the February 1974 general election. Bernadette would later go on to join the IRSP In the October 1974 general election the spirit of Unity was revived, if not the name, when Frank Maguire won Fermanagh and South Tyrone as an agreed independent Republican. He held the seat until his death in 1981. In 1978 Unity merged with the remnants of the Nationalist Party to form the

Irish Independence Party The Irish Independence Party (IIP) was a nationalist political party in Northern Ireland, founded in October 1977 p. 135. by Frank McManus (former Unity MP for Fermanagh & South Tyrone between 1970 and 1974) and Fergus McAteer (son of Eddie Mc ...

. Defunct political parties in Northern Ireland History of Northern Ireland Irish republican parties Political parties disestablished in 1978 Socialist parties in Ireland 1978 disestablishments in Northern Ireland {{Northern-Ireland-party-stub