Sinn Féin receives most first preference votes for first time in Northern Ireland

Mary Lou McDonald speaks on RTÉ's Six One during election counts in Northern Ireland.

Sinn Féin has won the most first preference votes in an election in Northern Ireland for the first time.

250,388 first preference votes were cast for Sinn Féin, compared with 184,002 for the Democratic Unionist Party.

Sinn Féin is confident that when all votes are counted that will translate into having the most seats in the Stormont Assembly.

That will give it the right to nominate the First Minister, the first time in the history of Northern Ireland that the head of government would be a nationalist.

Keep up to date with all the latest Irish and international news and current affairs with http://www.rte.ie/news

Follow us on twitter @rtenews and on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/rtenews

Видео Sinn Féin receives most first preference votes for first time in Northern Ireland канала RTÉ News