# The Northern Ireland Assembly (Minimum Period) (Amendment) Order 2026, Article 2: Amendment of the Northern Ireland Assembly (Minimum Period) Order 2010


For article 2(1) of the Northern Ireland Assembly (Minimum Period) Order 2010 substitute—
“(1) The minimum period for the purpose of section 31 (6) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (date of elections and dissolutions) is—
(a) 26 days; or
(b) where paragraph (1A) applies, 30 days.
(1A) This paragraph applies where—
(a) the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland, in accordance with section 15 (3A) of the Representation of the People Act 1985 (combination of polls at Northern Ireland Assembly elections with polls at parliamentary and local elections), has directed that the polls at an election of the Northern Ireland Assembly are to be taken together with the polls at any other election or elections; and
(b) that direction is given no later than 31 days before the date of the polls.”.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2026/1080/article/2 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/northern-ireland-assembly-minimum-period-amendment-order-2026/article-2
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.