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P 121415Z FEB 10
FM AMCONSUL BELFAST
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1580
INFO AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 
AMEMBASSY DUBLIN PRIORITY 
NSC WASHINGTON DC
AMCONSUL BELFAST

C O N F I D E N T I A L BELFAST 000015 
 
 
NOFORN 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/WE 
NSC FOR TOBIN BRADLEY 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  2/12/2020 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR UK EI
SUBJECT: NORTHERN IRELAND'S SDLP ELECTS MARGARET RITCHIE PARTY 
LEADER, REPLACING MARK DURKAN 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Kamala Shirin Lakhdhir, Consul General, AMCONSUL 
BELFAST, State. 
REASON: 1.4 (b), (d) 
 
 
¶1. (C/NF) Summary:  Seeking to right itself following years of 
decline in the post-Good Friday Agreement era, the SDLP has 
chosen Margaret Ritchie to succeed Mark Durkan as party leader. 
Ritchie will seek to regain the party's pre-eminence among 
Northern Ireland's nationalist voters by differentiating itself 
from Sinn Fein on the economy, building a shared society, and by 
putting forth credible plans for a future united Ireland. 
Despite being seen as an earnest and honest politician, many 
SDLP faithful worry that Ritchie lacks the political muscle and 
business acumen needed to rebuild the party's structures in the 
post-John Hume, post-peace process context.  While some may have 
supported Ritchie's candidacy to preserve the social democratic 
legacy of the SDLP, others worry that "more of the same" will 
push the party further into irrelevance.  Regardless, Ritchie's 
success or failure will affect the shape and future of centrist 
nationalism in Northern Ireland.  End summary. 
 
Ritchie Takes Helm of SDLP 
-------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU/NF)  After a hard-fought, five-month-long campaign, 
delegates to Northern Ireland's Social Democratic Labor Party's 
(SDLP) annual conference elected current Minister for Social 
Development and South Down MLA Margaret Ritchie as their new 
leader.  Ritchie defeated South Belfast MP and MLA Dr. Alasdair 
McDonnell by a margin of 222 to 187 to succeed outgoing leader 
Mark Durkan.  Ritchie, who is the first woman to lead the party 
in its 40-year history, faces a daunting task in reviving the 
SDLP's electoral fortunes, which have waned significantly among 
nationalist voters in the post-John Hume/peace process era. 
This drift has cost the SDLP the position of deputy First 
Minister and rendered it a distant second behind rival Sinn 
Fein, a bitter pill to swallow for the party that sees itself as 
the architect of the peace and civil rights enjoyed in Northern 
Ireland today.  Since 1998, the SDLP's share of the vote has 
declined from 22 percent to 15 percent, slipping from the perch 
of largest nationalist party to holding only 16 Assembly seats 
to Sinn Fein's 28.  In addition to being the first female leader 
of the party, Ritchie is also the first to be elected, as Mark 
Durkan ran unopposed to succeed John Hume, as did Hume when he 
succeeded founding leader Gerry Fitt.  The party elected 
Mid-Ulster MLA Patsy McGlone, who ran unopposed, to succeed 
McDonnell as Deputy Leader. 
 
Establishment, Youth Support 
---------------------------- 
 
¶3. (C/NF) Ritchie received what appears to be decisive support 
from former leader Mark Durkan as well as backing from a 
majority of the SDLP's sitting MLAs at Stormont.  Members of 
Durkan's family and some of his closest supporters expressed to 
us their joy as the results were announced to the conference, 
which reflected what we were hearing the evening prior to the 
vote count.  The SDLP Youth wing had endorsed Ritchie as early 
as late-October 2009, and its members served prominently as core 
elements of her campaign team and as visible backers during the 
party conference.  In announcing its support for Ritchie, the 
SDLP Youth cited her "courage as a Minister standing up to the 
DUP, Sinn Fein, and the UDA, and her dedication and commitment 
to a shared future" among its reasons for backing her candidacy. 
 
 
¶4. (C/NF) The possibility of southern party Fianna Fail making 
further inroads in SDLP-friendly districts in the North seems to 
have spooked some among the SDLP's elected representatives and 
boosted Ritchie's candidacy.  Several party delegates told us 
that they feared that McDonnell's leadership would render the 
SDLP as merely a northern arm of Fianna Fail, a theme alluded to 
in the speech to the conference by veteran MP Eddie McGrady. 
(Note: In addition to Irish Taoiseach Brian Cowen, Fianna Fail 
sent approximately 15 members to attend the conference.  Fianna 
Fail currently does not run candidates in Northern Ireland, but 
is moving toward establishing a greater presence in the north.) 
This fear is not without foundation: long a discussion point 
among members, several party stalwarts, including the 
businessman son of a party founder, told us that an SDLP 
link-up/merger with Fianna Fail would be welcome and the only 
way to ensure a successful, all-island, and business-friendly 
alternative to Sinn Fein. 
 
Ritchie's Platform 
------------------ 
 
¶5. (SBU/NF) Pledging to resurrect the SDLP to its former glory 
as the largest party in Northern Ireland, Ritchie laid out a 
platform designed to distinguish the SDLP from Sinn Fein and the 
other parties across the sectarian divide.  Citing the SDLP's 
ability to lead the people peacefully to a shared society and 
united Ireland, Ritchie said her vision for the party will focus 
on being smarter on the economy, having a vision for a shared 
society, and having a credible plan for Irish unity.  Drawing a 
contrast with McDonnell's sharp criticism of the party's 
direction, Ritchie sought to remind the party faithful of what 
they have accomplished thus far, to include:  one person one 
vote; an end to gerrymandering; fair allocation of housing; an 
end to discrimination in the workplace; reform of policing; 
power sharing in government; North-South cooperation, and parity 
between the Catholic-Nationalist and Protestant-Unionist 
traditions. 
 
¶6. (SBU/NF) The SDLP's newest MLA Conall McDevitt, who the party 
appointed in December to fill the slot of illness-stricken South 
Belfast MLA Carmel Hanna, told us that Ritchie's "social 
democratic" credentials where decisive in gaining his and 
others' support, as they see her as stronger on issues such as 
public housing, health provision, education, and the 
environment.  McDevitt, who left his career as the managing 
director of a public relations firm to take up the MLA role, had 
formerly served on the SDLP communications team and is seen as a 
rising star in the party. 
 
McDonnell's Manifesto 
--------------------- 
 
¶7. (C/NF) Supporters of McDonnell, who many deem as more 
competent in matters of business and the economy and a proponent 
of radically restructuring the SDLP, worry that Ritchie will 
preside over "more of the same" and lead the party into further 
electoral irrelevance.  A senior banking official and long-time 
SDLP supporter told us that Ritchie's leadership of the party 
would be a "disaster" in terms of the SDLP's approach to 
business and the economy, but conceded that McDonnell's 
sometimes "bull-in-the-china-shop" approach had put off many 
party colleagues.  In a recent meeting, an exasperated McDonnell 
acknowledged to us that his focus on private sector development, 
in contrast to Ritchie's more social democratic approach, had 
unnerved some of the party faithful, but he saw it as the only 
way to address NI's socio-economic woes and build 
cross-community cohesion. 
 
¶8. (C/NF) McDonnell also stressed the need for the SDLP to 
rebuild the party's finances, starting with more robust 
international fundraising.  McDonnell felt that the SDLP could 
make a serious dent into Sinn Fein's fundraising in the U.S. by 
utilizing better on-the-ground organization to challenge Sinn 
Fein on potentially damaging issues such as its plan, or lack 
thereof, to support investment in Ireland.  The SDLP could also 
highlight Sinn Fein's connection to radical socialism and pariah 
figures such as Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez, and the HAMAS 
government.  McDonnell said, however, that he felt thwarted in 
his desire to pursue a more robust fundraising presence by party 
traditionalists. 
 
9.(C/NF) Viewing the party as currently existing on the scraps 
of Nobel Peace prize winner John Hume's legacy, McDonnell felt 
that the entire branch structure of the party had to be 
reinvigorated, with more power being devolved to party's 
grassroots level.  This, he felt, would help strengthen the 
SDLP's campaign structure and management by ensuring that local 
concerns fed into the party's electoral strategies.  He cited 
electoral mismanagement as having cost the party several 
closely-contested seats in recent elections.  McDonnell also 
believed that strengthening the branch level party structures 
would boost ties with the business community and prove a 
decisive edge over rival parties on issues related to the 
economy. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
10.(C/NF)  Although Ritchie was the more palatable and 
comfortable candidate for the majority of the SDLP, it is not 
yet clear if she possesses either the political muscle or 
innovative ideas to lead the party to its once-held position of 
pre-eminence.  Being both the first female party leader and 
enjoying a strong connection with the youth of the party send 
positive signals to the SDLP electorate, and her reported 
penchant for organization and strategy should help align a party 
that ran adrift in the post-Hume era.  That said, her faltering 
rhetorical skills and lack of business acumen may limit her 
ability to take on Sinn Fein in areas in which it is potentially 
vulnerable, such as education and the economy.  Such an outcome 
could hasten the advance of Fianna Fail northward as 
nationalists potentially seek a more capable and robust 
alternative to Sinn Fein, despite Fianna Fail's assertions that 
it is not actively trying to grow its presence north of the 
border.  Regardless, Ritchie's success or failure will affect 
the shape and future of centrist nationalism in Northern Ireland. 
 
Ritchie Biography 
----------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) Ritchie, who serves as an MLA for South Down, was 
appointed Minister for Social Development in May 2007 and is the 
sole SDLP member of the Executive cabinet.  Her political career 
began in 1985 with her election to the Down District Council 
followed by an appointment as Parliamentary Assistant and 
Political Researcher to MP for South Down Eddie McGrady.  She 
was elected as MLA for South Down in the Northern Ireland 
Assembly in both 2003 and 2007.  She resigned her seat with the 
Down District Council in 2009 in line with the SDLP's policy 
against "double jobbing" among its elected representatives. 
 
¶12. (SBU) Ritchie is 51 years old, and is a graduate of Queens 
University Belfast.  She courted controversy in 2007 when she 
withheld public money destined for a loyalist community 
transformation initiative following UDA-instigated violence in 
areas outside Belfast.  Despite earner her points among fellow 
nationalist, the move was later deemed improper and the decision 
quashed by a high court judge, but not before is caused disquiet 
in the unionist community. 
 
¶13. (C/NF) While Ritchie seems to connect well at a personal 
level with both colleagues and constituents, she has appeared 
wooden and stilted during interactions with Consulate officials. 
 She does not possess the rhetorical skills of her predecessor 
Mark Durkan, and is burdened with what some deem an unpleasant 
public speaking voice.  Some of her public speaking engagements 
in the run-up to the party conference, to include live radio 
interviews, received poor reviews from both supporters and 
opponents alike.  According to her supporters, however, Ritchie 
receives very high marks as a manager and organizer, and her 
sometimes bumpy public appearances are more than offset by an 
earnest and honest approach to politics. 
 
 
LAKHDHIR