Sinn Fein has emerged as the largest party in local government in Northern Ireland for the first time after making large gains in the council elections.
Vice president Michelle O’Neill described her party’s victory as “momentous” and said the result sent a message that Stormont should return.
However, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said that his party had polled strongly but conceded unionism needed to learn lessons from the election.
The election count crept into a third day with the last of 462 seats to be filled across 11 councils going to People Before Profit shortly after midnight on Sunday at Belfast City Hall.
The republican party has also replicated its result in the Assembly election last year when it became the largest party at Stormont.
The DUP has reinforced its position as the dominant force in unionism by winning 122 seats, the same number as in 2019.
The cross-community Alliance Party increased its representation on councils by winning 67 seats, an increase of 14.
The UUP has ended up with 54 seats, and the SDLP 39, with smaller parties and independents taking the remaining 36 seats.
Sinn Fein will be the largest party in six local government areas, including Belfast, while the DUP will have the largest representation in five councils.
Sinn Fein secured 30.9% of first preference votes, ahead of the DUP on 23.3%, 13.3% for Alliance, 10.9% for the Ulster Unionists and 8.7% for the SDLP.
The turnout for the election was 54%.
It was the first electoral test for the parties since last year’s Assembly elections and took place against the backdrop of the Stormont stalemate, with the powersharing institutions not operating as part of a DUP protest against post-Brexit trading arrangements.
She also said the boycott of the Stormont Assembly by the DUP “cannot go on”.
Ms O’Neill said: “The onus is now on the British and Irish Governments to get together and focus their efforts on the immediate restoration of the Executive and Assembly.
“The boycott of the Assembly cannot go on and an Executive must be formed.”
Sir Jeffrey said his party had increased its vote share from last year’s Assembly elections.
“We need to do better.
“The DUP has had a good election but unionism needs to do better, we need to be winning more seats.
“I’m happy to sit down with my fellow unionists and examine these issues and how greater co-operation can lead a pathway towards more success for unionism in general.”
He said: “I made it quite clear that the party elected me and I am the party leader, and I am going absolutely nowhere. It’ll be the party that decides my fate one way or the other.
“So those people who are a little bit shaky because we’ve had a bad election, they can stay shaky because I’m on absolutely rock solid foundations and I’m going nowhere.”
“It has been very clear when we have been speaking to people that people are really annoyed at the DUP, that they want the executive back up and running and they wanted to send a message,” he said.
“Sinn Fein asked them to send that message, and they sent it.”
Northern Ireland’s councils are responsible for setting rates, planning and waste collection as well as leisure services and parks.
