Ulster Unionist leader Mike Nesbitt has said that after voting for the UUP he will transfer his vote to the SDLP instead of other unionist parties.
Mr Nesbitt made the comment when appearing on the BBC's Sunday Politics programme today.
He said that he would not be instructing UUP voters on how to transfer.
Mr Nesbitt said: “In terms of preferences, I’m saying vote Ulster Unionist and then vote for any candidate that you trust will deliver for your community, for your constituency and for this country.”
He followed it up by saying “Not specifically the SDLP.”
Mr Nesbitt said: “Well, I will be standing square behind that notion and I will be transferring from my Ulster Unionist votes to the SDLP.” When Mr Nesbitt was asked if that meant he would vote Ulster Unionist ‘1’ and then SDLP next, he said: “Yes.”
Transfers are important in Northern Ireland Assembly elections as under the singer transferable voting system a voter has a single vote that is initially allocated to their most preferred candidate and, as the count proceeds and candidates are either elected or eliminated, is transferred to other candidates according to the voter's stated preferences, in proportion to any surplus or discarded votes.
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