Sir Jeffrey Donaldson’s downfall puts a question mark over power sharing in Northern Ireland because it bears his stamp – he was the man who engineered its collapse and resurrection.
The Democratic Unionist party followed him each time on the basis of trust but on Friday Donaldson was charged with historical sexual offences, a bombshell that led to his resignation and suspension from the party.
The implications for his party, Stormont and Northern Ireland could be far-reaching. Donaldson had persuaded the DUP to end a boycott and restore power sharing last month after he negotiated a deal with Downing Street over post-Brexit trading arrangements.
Unionist hardliners inside and outside his party cried sellout but Donaldson prevailed and chose Emma Little-Pengelly to be deputy first minister, serving with Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill as first minister.
As a Westminster MP, Donaldson, 61, had no post at Stormont. But his strategy underpinned the DUP’s presence in the assembly and four-party executive.
Most party members support the restoration of power sharing but a significant minority, including several MPs, oppose the deal and stew in simmering resentment. Now, just eight weeks into the restoration, Donaldson is gone.
Hardline rivals pounced. “This needs to be a cathartic moment for unionism. Unionism must steady itself and cut adrift the Donaldson folly of accepting an Irish Sea border and rule by EU law,” said Jim Allister of the Traditional Unionist Voice party.
But there is no immediate threat to Stormont. The DUP appointed Gavin Robinson, a Belfast MP and Donaldson lieutenant who backed the deal, as interim leader. Little-Pengelly is expected to remain deputy first minister.
Having just revived devolution after a two-year hiatus – triggered by the DUP’s walkout in 2022 – the main parties want to keep the show going. The first minister and deputy first minister regularly appear at events together, projecting a sense of shared purpose.
“My priority is to continue to provide the leadership the public expect and deserve, and to ensure the four-party executive coalition delivers for the whole of our community now and in the future,” O’Neill said in a statement.
Fissures, however, are likely. A hardliner may challenge Robinson for the leadership. If Donaldson steps down as MP, the DUP risks losing his Lagan Valley seat in a byelection to the Alliance party.
And unionism as a whole faces dilemmas about its direction amid demographic changes and Sinn Féin’s electoral ascendance on both sides of the border.
As leader of the dominant unionist party and a player at Westminster, Donaldson seemed to offer answers. On Friday all he left were questions.
