Ulster Unionist party

The Ulster Unionist party (UUP) arguably retains the greatest sense of unionist schisms across the last decade of all of Northern Ireland's parties.

Unlike the more successful Democratic Unionist party (DUP), which was only formed in 1971, the UUP and its predecessors can be traced as far back as the days of William Gladstone's home rule bills. The Irish Unionist party was the result of a merger of the Conservative and Liberal Unionists, which eventually turned into the modern-day Conservative party. The UUP was formally linked to the Tories until 1985; that historical bond has been revived for 2010, with joint candidates campaigning under the banner of Ulster Conservatives and Unionists - New Force.

The party's turbulent past reflects the province's history, of course, but it also reflects the history of unionism. For the DUP the last ten years have been a decade of profound change, a break from the past. For the UUP, the same sense of frustration lingers.

That last sentence would not have been written if the moderate UUP had not suffered consistent electoral setbacks in the last ten years. Leader David Trimble lost his seat in the 2005 election, in which the party shed five of its six seats. Its 18 seats in the 2007 Assembly election were a disappointment. It was excluded from a role in choosing the first minister role because the St Andrews Agreement handed the appointment to the leader of the largest party, dashing its kingmaking hopes. That, Trimble's successor Reg Empey claimed, was "foolish and sectarian".

The 2010 general election saw the party lose its only MP after Lady Sylvia Hermon, the only remaining MP, made her opposition to the Tory tie-up clear. She dodged UUP meetings repeatedly but claimed the support of her local association in North Down. She held the seat as an independent.

Frustration had continued into 2010 with the party excluded from talks on the devolution of policing and justice powers. "People have, quite rightly, had their fill of political carping and threats," Trimble's successor Reg Empey said in February. "We need to fix what is broken, before we add to our burden." That has been the UUP's problem for a long, long time.

Sir Reg quit after the election in favour of Tom Elliott, a leader viewed as being on the right of the party. Three election candidates subsequently resigned. The party lost two seats in 2011's elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, winning 16 of 108. It remains the third largest party.