← 2023 7 March 2025 | |||||||||||||
31 MPs and MLAs 16 votes needed to win | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| This article is part ofa series within the Politics of the United Kingdom on the |
 |
|---|
Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland |
The2025 Democratic Unionist Party deputy leadership election was held on 7 March 2025 to fill the Deputy Leader position within theDemocratic Unionist Party (DUP) which had been vacant since May 2024.Strangford MLAMichelle McIlveen was elected unopposed.[1]
Belfast East MPGavin Robinson was elected Deputy Leader of the DUP on 9 June 2023, defeatingUpper Bann MLAJonathan Buckley.[2] Robinson became interimLeader of the Democratic Unionist Party following the resignation ofJeffrey Donaldson after being charged with historical sexual offences on 29 March 2024.[3] In May 2024, Robinson was ratified as the party's permanent leader, vacating the deputy leadership.[4]
Nominations closed on 3 March 2025 and the election took place by secret ballot on 7 March 2025. The party'sMembers of Parliament (MPs) andMembers of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) were able to vote.[5]
| Candidate | Born | Political office | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 21 January 1971 | MLA forStrangford(since 2007) | McIlveen, a formerMinister for Education and party veteran, could be a compromise candidate whom both wings of the party could agree on. She is seen as a “safe pair of hands” who would also ensure a gender balance in the leadership.[6] |
| Candidate | Born | Political office | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 19 July 1991 | MLA forUpper Bann(since 2017) | Buckley represents the more traditional wing of the party.[7] |
 | 31 December 1979 | deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland(since 2024) MLA forLagan Valley(since 2022) | Polling has found Little-Pengelly to be the most popular minister in theExecutive.[8][9] |
DUP ChairmanLord Morrow announced that McIlveen was the only candidate nominated on 7 March 2025.[10]
| 2025 Democratic Unionist Party deputy leadership election | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Nominated by | |
| Michelle McIlveen | Gavin Robinson | |
2025 United Kingdom party leadership elections | ||
|---|---|---|
|  | |