Counting is almost finished in the North's local elections, and results are closely reflecting the patterns established in last week's Westminster election.
The local government elections confirmed the dominance of the Democratic Unionists at the polls, with the Reverend Ian Paisley's party commanding 29.6% of the first preference votes and taking a total of 182 council seats, up 52.
The DUP made significant gains in Lisburn where it captured eight extra seats, five more seats in Belfast, four more in Newtownabbey and Ards. The party also secured overall control of Ards, Ballymena and Castlereagh councils.
In Belfast, the collapse in the Ulster Unionist vote enabled the DUP to become the largest grouping with 15 seats to Sinn Fein's 14.
However once again, the cross community Alliance Party will hold the balance of power, with its four councillors deciding which party will hold the post of Lord Mayor. The UUP secured 18% of the total vote in the election, down 5.2%, with a total of 115 councillors across the province.
Among its more notable local government casualties were Lord Maginnis in Dungannon, Raymond Ferguson in Fermanagh and Chris McGimpsey in Belfast.
Sinn Fein extended its lead over the SDLP, with 23.2% of the vote, up 2.7 percentage points and 126 councillors, a rise of 18. The party broke new ground in Coleraine where former RUC reservist Billy Leonard captured a seat and in Ballymena where Monica Digney won.
There were also strong performances in Omagh and Magherafelt where Sinn Fein was one seat away from overall control and in Moyle, where the party's team rose by three seats. However there was disappointment in Derry where Sinn Fein failed to overtake the SDLP and the Mayor Gearoid O hEara lost a seat and in Newtownabbey where veteran republican Martin Meehan failed to win.
The SDLP's vote slipped by 1.9% to 17.4%, and the party returned 101 councillors, down 16.
Among the SDLP's casualties were Policing Board member Joe Byrne along with two colleagues in Omagh and former Assembly member Donovan McClelland in Antrim.
However in the SDLP's strongholds of Derry and Down, the local government election results reflected Mark Durkan and Eddie McGrady's successes over Sinn Fein in the Westminster election in Foyle and South Down.
The party secured the election of new younger faces in Derry like Mark H Durkan, Colm Eastwood and Senan Hume and also in Armagh where Civic Forum members Sharon Haughey and Mella Bratton captured a seat.
The Women's Coalition and the UK Unionist Party have lost all representation down to nothing from one and two seats respectively. The Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) halved their representation, losing two seats.
The Green Party has gained three seats in the election following the election of Brian Wilson, Bill Corry and Ciaran Mussen in North Down, Down District and Newry and Mourne councils.
Green Party leader in the Republic Trevor Sargent said his colleagues north of the Border were realistic challengers for at least one Stormont Assembly seat.