Northern Ireland votes on new power-sharing assembly

March 7, 2007

Belfast - Northern Ireland residents go to the polls Wednesday in a last-ditch effort to elect a new parliamentary assembly.

The hope is that assembly elections will round off the peace process by seeing the IRA's political wing, Sinn Fein, and their historical enemies, the Protestant hardliners of the Democratic Unionist Party, agree to serve together in a power-sharing executive.

Previous deadlines have passed without consequences, but this time, the new assembly must form a 12-member Cabinet within a week after the election, and be ready to receive control of most Northern Ireland government departments by March 26. Failure would mean the assembly's abolition the next day.