# 4th Northern Ireland Assembly

The fourth Northern Ireland Assembly was the unicameral devolved legislature of Northern Ireland following the 2011 assembly election on 5 May 2011. This iteration of the elected Assembly convened for the first time on 12 May 2011 in Parliament Buildings in Stormont, and ran for a full term.
The election saw 18 Assembly constituencies return six Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) each. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), led by Peter Robinson, remained the largest unionist party and the largest overall. Sinn Féin, led by Gerry Adams, remained the largest Irish nationalist party and the second largest overall. As per the Belfast Agreement and the St Andrews Agreement, a power-sharing coalition was then formed with the DUP, Sinn Féin, the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) and the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland. William Hay was elected as Speaker in the first sitting of the assembly. Following Hay's retirement, Mitchel McLaughlin was elected as the first nationalist Speaker in October 2014.
The UUP, led by Tom Elliott, and the SDLP, led by Margaret Ritchie, secured fewer seats than in the previous assembly. The Alliance Party, led by David Ford, emerged from the election with an increased mandate after securing an additional seat. The four main parties which sat outside of the Northern Ireland Executive and thereby served unofficially in opposition were the Green Party in Northern Ireland, the Traditional Unionist Voice, NI21 and the United Kingdom Independence Party.
More than three quarters of the members of the 3rd Northern Ireland Assembly were re-elected to the 4th: 83 MLAs had been members for all or part of the assembly's previous term. This included 11 individuals who became MLAs in the previous assembly by virtue of co-option. Twenty of the MLAs elected in 2011 were women. 25 new MLAs were elected to the assembly, 23% of the total.

## Party strengths

| Party | Party | Designation | May 2011 election | Jul 2015 end |
| ● | Democratic Unionist Party | Unionist | 38 | 38 |
| ● | Sinn Féin | Nationalist | 29 | 28 |
| ● | Ulster Unionist Party | Unionist | 16 | 13 |
| ● | Social Democratic and Labour Party | Nationalist | 14 | 14 |
| ● | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland | Other | 8 | 8 |
| | Green Party in Northern Ireland | Other | 1 | 1 |
| | Traditional Unionist Voice | Unionist | 1 | 1 |
| | Independent | Unionist | 1 | 2 |
| | NI21 | Unionist | - | 1 |
| | UKIP | Unionist | - | 1 |
| | Speaker | None | 0 | 1 |
| Totals by designation | Totals by designation | Unionist | 56 | 56 |
| Totals by designation | Totals by designation | Nationalist | 43 | 42 |
| Totals by designation | Totals by designation | Other | 9 | 9 |
| Totals by designation | Totals by designation | None | 0 | 1 |
| Total | Total | Total | 108 | 108 |
| ● = Northern Ireland Executive |||||
* ↑ The UUP withdrew from the Executive on 1 Sep 2015.
* ↑ In May 2014 NI21 announced its intention to designate as "Other" but technically remained designated Unionist.
* ↑ Once elected, the Speaker relinquishes party affiliation.

### Graphical representation

* As elected, 5 May 2011
* 12 May 2011 to 27 Jan 2012
* 12 Jan 2015 to end
This is not the actual seating plan.

## Leadership

* Speaker: Mitchel McLaughlin (previously Sinn Féin) (from 12 Jan 2015) — William Hay (previously Democratic Unionist Party) (until 13 Oct 2014)
* Principal Deputy Speaker: Robin Newton (Democratic Unionist Party)
* Deputy Speaker: John Dallat (Social Democratic and Labour Party)
* Deputy Speaker: Roy Beggs Jr (Ulster Unionist Party)

### Executive

* First Minister and Leader of Democratic Unionist Party: Peter Robinson
* Deputy First Minister: Martin McGuinness
** Assembly Leader of Sinn Féin: Raymond McCartney
* Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party: Alasdair McDonnell
* Leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland: David Ford

### Opposition

* Leaders of the Ulster Unionist Party: Mike Nesbitt
* Leader of Green Party in Northern Ireland: Steven Agnew
* Leader of NI21: Basil McCrea
* Leader of Traditional Unionist Voice: Jim Allister
* Assembly Leader of UKIP: David McNarry

## MLAs by party

This is a list of MLAs elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in the 2011 Northern Ireland Assembly election, sorted by party.
Not to be confused: Paul Girvan (South Antrim) and Paul Givan (Lagan Valley) are different people, although both were co-opted to replace retiring Democratic Unionist members of the last Assembly. Roy Beggs, Jr. (born 1962) is the son of the Ulster Unionist Roy Beggs (born 1936), a former Assembly member for North Antrim and former MP for East Antrim in the British House of Commons. Similarly Mark H. Durkan (b. 1978) is the nephew of the former SDLP leader Mark Durkan (b. 1960), who left the Assembly after his election in 2010 as MP for Foyle.
| Party | Name | Constituency |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Sydney Anderson | Upper Bann |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Jonathan Bell | Strangford |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Paula Bradley | Belfast North |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Thomas Buchanan | West Tyrone |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Gregory Campbell | East Londonderry |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Trevor Clarke | South Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Jonathan Craig | Lagan Valley |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Sammy Douglas | Belfast East |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Gordon Dunne | North Down |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Alex Easton | North Down |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Arlene Foster | Fermanagh and South Tyrone |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Paul Frew | North Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Paul Girvan | South Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Paul Givan | Lagan Valley |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Brenda Hale | Lagan Valley |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Simon Hamilton | Strangford |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | David Hilditch | East Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | William Humphrey | Belfast North |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | William Irwin | Newry and Armagh |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Pam Lewis | South Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Gordon Lyons † | East Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Nelson McCausland | Belfast North |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Ian McCrea | Mid Ulster |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | David McIlveen | North Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Michelle McIlveen | Strangford |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Adrian McQuillan | East Londonderry |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Gary Middleton †† | Foyle |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Maurice Morrow | Fermanagh and South Tyrone |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Stephen Moutray | Upper Bann |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Robin Newton | Belfast East |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Emma Pengelly † | Belfast South |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Edwin Poots | Lagan Valley |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | George Robinson | East Londonderry |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Peter Robinson | Belfast East |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Alastair Ross | East Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Mervyn Storey | North Antrim |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Peter Weir | North Down |
| Democratic Unionist Party (38) | Jim Wells | South Down |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Cathal Boylan | Newry and Armagh |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Michaela Boyle | West Tyrone |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Megan Fearon † | Newry and Armagh |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Phil Flanagan | Fermanagh and South Tyrone |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Chris Hazzard † | South Down |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Gerry Kelly | Belfast North |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Seán Lynch | Fermanagh and South Tyrone |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Alex Maskey † | Belfast West |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Declan McAleer † | West Tyrone |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Fra McCann | Belfast West |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Jennifer McCann | Belfast West |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Raymond McCartney | Foyle |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Rosie McCorley † | Belfast West |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Barry McElduff | West Tyrone |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Bronwyn McGahan † | Fermanagh and South Tyrone |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Martin McGuinness | Mid Ulster |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Daithí McKay | North Antrim |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Maeve McLaughlin † | Foyle |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Oliver McMullan | East Antrim |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Ian Milne † | Mid Ulster |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Conor Murphy † | Newry and Armagh |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Carál Ní Chuilín | Belfast North |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Cathal Ó hOisín | East Londonderry |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Máirtín Ó Muilleoir † | Belfast South |
| Sinn Féin (28) | John O'Dowd | Upper Bann |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Michelle O'Neill | Mid Ulster |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Caitríona Ruane | South Down |
| Sinn Féin (28) | Pat Sheehan | Belfast West |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Andy Allen † | Belfast East |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Roy Beggs, Jr. | East Antrim |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Adrian Cochrane-Watson † | South Antrim |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Leslie Cree | North Down |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Jo-Anne Dobson | Upper Bann |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Sam Gardiner | Upper Bann |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Ross Hussey | West Tyrone |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Danny Kennedy | Newry and Armagh |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Michael McGimpsey | Belfast South |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Mike Nesbitt | Strangford |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Sandra Overend | Mid Ulster |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Alastair Patterson †† | Fermanagh and South Tyrone |
| Ulster Unionist Party (13) | Robin Swann | North Antrim |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Alex Attwood | Belfast West |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Dominic Bradley | Newry and Armagh |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | John Dallat | East Londonderry |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Gerard Diver † | Foyle |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Mark H. Durkan | Foyle |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Colum Eastwood | Foyle |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Claire Hanna † | Belfast South |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Dolores Kelly | Upper Bann |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Daniel McCrossan † | West Tyrone |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Patsy McGlone | Mid Ulster |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Karen McKevitt | South Down |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Fearghal McKinney † | Belfast South |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Alban Maginness | Belfast North |
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (14) | Seán Rogers † | South Down |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8) | Judith Cochrane | Belfast East |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8) | Stewart Dickson | East Antrim |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8) | Stephen Farry | North Down |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8) | David Ford | South Antrim |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8) | Anna Lo | Belfast South |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8) | Trevor Lunn | Lagan Valley |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8) | Chris Lyttle | Belfast East |
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8) | Kieran McCarthy | Strangford |
| Green Party in Northern Ireland (1) | Steven Agnew | North Down |
| Traditional Unionist Voice (1) | Jim Allister | North Antrim |
| Independent (2) | John McCallister ‡ | South Down |
| Independent (2) | Claire Sugden † | East Londonderry |
| NI21 (1) | Basil McCrea ‡ | Lagan Valley |
| UKIP (1) | David McNarry ‡ | Strangford |
| Speaker (1) | Mitchel McLaughlin ‡ | South Antrim |
† Co-opted to replace an elected MLA
‡ Changed affiliation during the term

## MLAs by constituency

The list is given in alphabetical order by constituency.
Members of the 4th Northern Ireland Assembly :
| Constituency | Name | Party |
| Belfast East | Andy Allen † | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Belfast East | Judith Cochrane | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland |
| Belfast East | Sammy Douglas | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Belfast East | Chris Lyttle | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland |
| Belfast East | Robin Newton | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Belfast East | Peter Robinson | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Belfast North | Paula Bradley | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Belfast North | William Humphrey | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Belfast North | Gerry Kelly | Sinn Féin |
| Belfast North | Nelson McCausland | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Belfast North | Alban Maginness | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Belfast North | Carál Ní Chuilín | Sinn Féin |
| Belfast South | Claire Hanna † | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Belfast South | Anna Lo | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland |
| Belfast South | Michael McGimpsey | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Belfast South | Fearghal McKinney † | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Belfast South | Máirtín Ó Muilleoir † | Sinn Féin |
| Belfast South | Emma Pengelly † | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Belfast West | Alex Attwood | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Belfast West | Fra McCann | Sinn Féin |
| Belfast West | Jennifer McCann | Sinn Féin |
| Belfast West | Alex Maskey † | Sinn Féin |
| Belfast West | Paul Maskey | Sinn Féin |
| Belfast West | Pat Sheehan | Sinn Féin |
| East Antrim | Roy Beggs, Jr. | Ulster Unionist Party |
| East Antrim | Stewart Dickson | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland |
| East Antrim | David Hilditch | Democratic Unionist Party |
| East Antrim | Gordon Lyons † | Democratic Unionist Party |
| East Antrim | Oliver McMullan | Sinn Féin |
| East Antrim | Alastair Ross | Democratic Unionist Party |
| East Londonderry | Gregory Campbell | Democratic Unionist Party |
| East Londonderry | John Dallat | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| East Londonderry | Adrian McQuillan | Democratic Unionist Party |
| East Londonderry | Cathal Ó hOisín | Sinn Féin |
| East Londonderry | George Robinson | Democratic Unionist Party |
| East Londonderry | Claire Sugden † | Independent |
| Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Tom Elliott | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Phil Flanagan | Sinn Féin |
| Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Arlene Foster | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Bronwyn McGahan † | Sinn Féin |
| Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Seán Lynch | Sinn Féin |
| Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Maurice Morrow | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Foyle | Mark H. Durkan | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Foyle | Colum Eastwood | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Foyle | Gary Middleton †† | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Foyle | Raymond McCartney | Sinn Féín |
| Foyle | Maeve McLaughlin † | Sinn Féín |
| Foyle | Pat Ramsey | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Lagan Valley | Jonathan Craig | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Lagan Valley | Paul Givan | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Lagan Valley | Brenda Hale | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Lagan Valley | Trevor Lunn | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland |
| Lagan Valley | Basil McCrea ‡ | NI21 |
| Lagan Valley | Edwin Poots | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Mid Ulster | Ian McCrea | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Mid Ulster | Patsy McGlone | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Mid Ulster | Martin McGuinness | Sinn Féin |
| Mid Ulster | Ian Milne † | Sinn Féin |
| Mid Ulster | Michelle O'Neill | Sinn Féin |
| Mid Ulster | Sandra Overend | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Newry and Armagh | Cathal Boylan | Sinn Féin |
| Newry and Armagh | Dominic Bradley | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Newry and Armagh | Megan Fearon † | Sinn Féin |
| Newry and Armagh | William Irwin | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Newry and Armagh | Danny Kennedy | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Newry and Armagh | Conor Murphy †† | Sinn Féin |
| North Antrim | Jim Allister | Traditional Unionist Voice |
| North Antrim | Paul Frew | Democratic Unionist Party |
| North Antrim | David McIlveen | Democratic Unionist Party |
| North Antrim | Daithí McKay | Sinn Féin |
| North Antrim | Mervyn Storey | Democratic Unionist Party |
| North Antrim | Robin Swann | Ulster Unionist Party |
| North Down | Steven Agnew | Green Party in Northern Ireland |
| North Down | Leslie Cree | Ulster Unionist Party |
| North Down | Gordon Dunne | Democratic Unionist Party |
| North Down | Alex Easton | Democratic Unionist Party |
| North Down | Stephen Farry | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland |
| North Down | Peter Weir | Democratic Unionist Party |
| South Antrim | Trevor Clarke | Democratic Unionist Party |
| South Antrim | David Ford | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland |
| South Antrim | Paul Girvan | Democratic Unionist Party |
| South Antrim | Adrian Cochrane-Watson † | Ulster Unionist Party |
| South Antrim | Pam Lewis | Democratic Unionist Party |
| South Antrim | Mitchel McLaughlin ‡ | Speaker |
| South Down | Chris Hazzard † | Sinn Féin |
| South Down | John McCallister ‡ | Independent |
| South Down | Karen McKevitt | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| South Down | Seán Rogers † | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| South Down | Caitríona Ruane | Sinn Féin |
| South Down | Jim Wells | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Strangford | Jonathan Bell | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Strangford | Simon Hamilton | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Strangford | Kieran McCarthy | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland |
| Strangford | Michelle McIlveen | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Strangford | David McNarry ‡ | UKIP |
| Strangford | Mike Nesbitt | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Upper Bann | Sydney Anderson | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Upper Bann | Jo-Anne Dobson | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Upper Bann | Sam Gardiner | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Upper Bann | Dolores Kelly | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| Upper Bann | Stephen Moutray | Democratic Unionist Party |
| Upper Bann | John O'Dowd | Sinn Féin |
| West Tyrone | Michaela Boyle | Sinn Féin |
| West Tyrone | Thomas Buchanan | Democratic Unionist Party |
| West Tyrone | Ross Hussey | Ulster Unionist Party |
| West Tyrone | Declan McAleer † | Sinn Féin |
| West Tyrone | Daniel McCrossan † | Social Democratic and Labour Party |
| West Tyrone | Barry McElduff | Sinn Féin |
† Co-opted to replace an elected MLA ‡ Changed affiliation during the term

## New members elected in May 2011

Twenty-five members of the third Assembly who were sitting at its dissolution on 24 March 2011 were succeeded by new members after the election of 5 May 2011. Seventeen sitting members did not present themselves for re-election and another eight were defeated at the polls. One re-elected member had been elected with a different affiliation in 2007.
The numbers indicate the percentage of votes each member received in the first round of counting under the Single Transferable Vote in the 2011 election, and the round which decided his or her election or defeat.
This is a sortable table arranged alphabetically by the new member's surname. In some constituencies (Foyle, West Tyrone and Fermanagh & South Tyrone) where it is not possible to couple a single outgoing member by party with a single successor, the incoming members are arranged alphabetically (so the second one may be out of alphabetic order with the rest of the table) and the outgoing members are arranged arbitrarily.
| Outgoing member(s) | Party | 1st pref | Round | Constituency | New Member(s) | Party | 1st pref | Round |
| Brian Wilson (retiring) | Green Party in N. Ireland | — | — | North Down | Steven Agnew | Green | 7.9% | 11 |
| Declan O'Loan | SDLP | 9.1% | 9 | North Antrim | Jim Allister | Trad. U. Voice | 10.1% | 9 |
| Claire McGill (retiring) | Sinn Féin | — | — | West Tyrone | Michaela Boyle | Sinn Féin | 12.9% | 4 |
| Fred Cobain | Ulster Unionist | 8.2% | 7 | Belfast North | Paula Bradley | DUP | 10.4% | 6 |
| Allan Bresland Kieran Deeny (retiring) | Democratic Unionist Independent | 10.3% — | 0 — | West Tyrone | Joe Byrne Ross Hussey | SDLP UUP | 8.5% 10.4% | 5 |
| Dawn Purvis | Ind. (elected as Prog. U.) | 5.3% | 11 | Belfast East | Judith Cochrane | Alliance | 13.4% | 7 |
| Reg Empey (retiring) Lord Empey | Ulster Unionist | — | — | Belfast East | Michael Copeland | UUP | 6.8% | 11 |
| Seán Neeson (retiring) | Alliance | — | — | East Antrim | Stewart Dickson | Alliance | 10.0% | 9 |
| George Savage (retiring) | Ulster Unionist | — | — | Upper Bann | Jo-Anne Dobson | UUP | 7.9% | 7 |
| Wallace Browne (retiring) Baron Browne of Belmont | Democratic Unionist | — | — | Belfast East | Sammy Douglas | DUP | 8.3% | 11 |
| Alan McFarland | Ind. (elected as UUP) | 6.7% | 9 | North Down | Gordon Dunne | DUP | 13.3% | 2 |
| Pól Callaghan [replaced Mark Durkan, MP] Mary Bradley (retiring) | SDLP | 6.8% — | 4 — | Foyle | Mark H. Durkan Colum Eastwood | SDLP | 12.8% 7.6% | 4 7 |
| Tommy Gallagher | SDLP | 9.6% | 6 | Fermanagh & South Tyrone | Phil Flanagan | Sinn Féin | 10.6% | 6 |
| Gerry McHugh (retiring) | Ind. (elected as SF) | — | — | Fermanagh & South Tyrone | Seán Lynch | Sinn Féin | 10.7% | 6 |
| Paul Butler (retiring) | Sinn Féin | — | — | Lagan Valley | Brenda Hale | DUP | 8.2% | 7 |
| Thomas Burns | SDLP | 10.6% | 0 | South Antrim | Pam Lewis | DUP | 8.9% | 4 |
| Ian Paisley, PC (retiring) Lord Bannside | Democratic Unionist | — | — | North Antrim | David McIlveen | DUP | 8.1% | 8 |
| P.J. Bradley (retiring) | SDLP | — | — | South Down | Karen McKevitt | SDLP | 9.0% | 9 |
| Ken Robinson (retiring) | Ulster Unionist | — | — | East Antrim | Oliver McMullan | Sinn Féin | 8.2% | 10 |
| Simpson Gibson (retiring) [replaced Jim Shannon] | Democratic Unionist | — | — | Strangford | Mike Nesbitt | UUP | 11.0% | 6 |
| Billy Leonard (retiring) [replaced Francie Brolly] | Sinn Féin (suspended) | — | — | East Londonderry | Cathal Ó hOisín | Sinn Féin | 13.5% | 6 |
| Billy Armstrong (retiring) | Ulster Unionist | — | — | Mid Ulster | Sandra Overend | UUP | 10.3% | 6 |
| Robert Coulter (retiring) | Ulster Unionist | — | — | North Antrim | Robin Swann | UUP | 6.2% | 9 |

### Member returning with a different affiliation

David McClarty, originally elected from East Londonderry as an Ulster Unionist, although not re-nominated by the UUP in 2011, stood successfully for re-election as an independent. This reduced the UUP's strength from 2007, while keeping independent strength in the Assembly at one (as Kieran Deeny, the retiring independent member, was not succeeded in West Tyrone by another independent). McClarty decided not to re-join the UUP after his re-election.

## Changes since the election
### † Co-options

| Date co-opted | Constituency | Party | Outgoing | Co-optee | Reason |
| 1 April 2012 | South Down | SDLP | Margaret Ritchie | Seán Rogers | Margaret Ritchie resigned to concentrate on her role as a Member of Parliament. |
| 13 April 2012 | South Down | Sinn Féin | Willie Clarke | Chris Hazzard | Willie Clarke resigned to concentrate on his role as a Down District Councillor. |
| 14 June 2012 | Foyle | Sinn Féin | Martina Anderson | Maeve McLaughlin | Martina Anderson resigned after becoming a member of the European Parliament. |
| 7 July 2012 | Newry and Armagh | Sinn Féin | Conor Murphy | Megan Fearon | Conor Murphy resigned to concentrate on his role as a Member of Parliament. |
| 7 July 2012 | West Tyrone | Sinn Féin | Pat Doherty | Declan McAleer | Pat Doherty resigned to concentrate on his role as a Member of Parliament. |
| 7 July 2012 | Belfast West | Sinn Féin | Paul Maskey | Rosie McCorley | Paul Maskey resigned to concentrate on his role as a Member of Parliament. |
| 7 July 2012 | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Sinn Féin | Michelle Gildernew | Bronwyn McGahan | Michelle Gildernew resigned to concentrate on his role as a Member of Parliament. |
| 8 April 2013 | Mid Ulster | Sinn Féin | Francie Molloy | Ian Milne | Francie Molloy resigned to concentrate on his role as a Member of Parliament. |
| 12 September 2013 | Belfast South | SDLP | Conall McDevitt | Fearghal McKinney | Conall McDevitt resigned. |
| 6 May 2014 | East Londonderry | Ind. Unionist | David McClarty | Claire Sugden | David McClarty died. |
| 20 October 2014 | Foyle | DUP | William Hay | Maurice Devenney | William Hay resigned. |
| 22 October 2014 | Belfast South | Sinn Féin | Alex Maskey | Máirtín Ó Muilleoir | Alex Maskey resigned in order to be transferred to Belfast West. |
| 3 November 2014 | Belfast West | Sinn Féin | Sue Ramsey | Alex Maskey | Sue Ramsey resigned. |
| 13 April 2015 | Foyle | DUP | Maurice Devenney | Gary Middleton | Maurice Devenney resigned. |
| 8 June 2015 | Newry and Armagh | Sinn Féin | Mickey Brady | Conor Murphy | Mickey Brady was elected as Member of Parliament for Newry and Armagh in the 2015 general election. |
| 29 June 2015 | South Antrim | UUP | Danny Kinahan | Adrian Cochrane-Watson | Danny Kinahan was elected as Member of Parliament for South Antrim in the 2015 general election. |
| 29 June 2015 | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | UUP | Tom Elliott | Neil Somerville | Tom Elliott was elected as Member of Parliament for Fermanagh and South Tyrone in the 2015 general election. |
| 29 June 2015 | Belfast South | SDLP | Alasdair McDonnell | Claire Hanna | Alasdair McDonnell resigned to concentrate on his role as a Member of Parliament. |
| 19 August 2015 | East Antrim | DUP | Sammy Wilson | Gordon Lyons | Sammy Wilson resigned to concentrate on his role as a Member of Parliament. |
| 15 September 2015 | Belfast East | UUP | Michael Copeland | Andy Allen | Michael Copeland resigned. |
| 28 September 2015 | Belfast South | DUP | Jimmy Spratt | Emma Pengelly | Jimmy Spratt resigned. |
| 7 January 2016 | Foyle | SDLP | Pat Ramsey | Gerard Diver | Pat Ramsey resigned. |
| 7 January 2016 | West Tyrone | SDLP | Joe Byrne | Daniel McCrossan | Joe Byrne resigned. |
| 27 January 2016 | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | UUP | Neil Somerville | Alastair Patterson | Neil Somerville resigned. |

### ‡ Changes in affiliation

| Date | Constituency | Name | Previous affiliation | New affiliation | Circumstance |
| 12 May 2011 | Foyle | William Hay | DUP | Speaker | William Hay elected Speaker of the Assembly at its first sitting. |
| 27 January 2012 | Strangford | David McNarry | UUP | Ind. Unionist | David McNarry suspended from the UUP for nine months after an investigation by the party. |
| 4 October 2012 | Strangford | David McNarry | Ind. Unionist | UKIP | David McNarry joined UKIP becoming the party's first Northern Ireland MLA. |
| 14 February 2013 | South Down | John McCallister | UUP | Ind. Unionist | John McCallister resigned from the UUP after it formed an electoral pact with the DUP. |
| 15 February 2013 | Lagan Valley | Basil McCrea | UUP | Ind. Unionist | Basil McCrea resigned from the UUP after it formed an electoral pact with the DUP. |
| 6 June 2013 | South Down | John McCallister | Ind. Unionist | NI21 | John McCallister along with McCrea established a new political party. |
| 6 June 2013 | Lagan Valley | Basil McCrea | Ind. Unionist | NI21 | Basil McCrea along with McCallister established a new political party. |
| 3 July 2014 | South Down | John McCallister | NI21 | Ind. Unionist | John McCallister resigns from NI21 over differences with the party leadership regarding an investigation into sexual wrongdoing by party leader, Basil McCrea. |
| 12 January 2015 | South Antrim | Mitchel McLaughlin | Sinn Féin | Speaker | Mitchel McLaughlin elected Speaker of the Assembly following the retirement of William Hay. |