Date formed 26 May 2016 Head of government Arlene Foster Head of state Elizabeth II | Date dissolved 16 January 2017 Deputy head of government Martin McGuinness No. of ministers 10 | |
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The Fourth Executive is, under the terms of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, a power-sharing coalition.
Following the 6 May 2016 elections to the fifth Northern Ireland Assembly the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin remained the two largest parties in the Assembly.
Notably for the first time in the assembly's history, parties entitled to seats on the executive could instead opt to go into formal opposition. The UUP, SDLP and Alliance all took up this option, leaving the DUP and Sinn Féin to form a government.
The 4th Northern Ireland Executive was formed on 25 May 2016.
References
Executive of the 5th Northern Ireland Assembly Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA