The 1970 Bannside by-election of 16 April 1970 resulted in the first election won by Ian Paisley.
On 16 April 1970, in a by-election to the Northern Ireland Parliament, Paisley, the leader of the Protestant Unionist Party, won the Bannside seat formerly held by Prime Minister Terence O'Neill.
[1] This followed a close showing by Paisley where he had come 1,500 votes behind O'Neil in the 1969 general election.
[1] The by-election was held on the same day as a by-election in South Antrim which also resulted in a win by the Protestant Unionist candidate over the incumbent Ulster Unionist Party,[1] who in this case came from further behind.
He would retain this seat until 2010, mostly as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party.