SDLP Party Conference 2026
What to Expect
The SDLP Party Conference takes place this weekend in Belfast and marks the party’s final annual conference before the Assembly and Local Government elections on 6 May 2027. With less than eight months until polling day, the event comes at an important moment for the party as it looks to move from highlighting its record in Opposition towards setting out a clear electoral offer for voters.
Where the SDLP Currently Stands
The party enters their conference with some grounds for optimism. Recent LucidTalk polling has placed the SDLP on 13%, compared with around 9% at the 2022 Assembly Election. At the same time, Claire Hanna MP continues to perform strongly in leadership polling, including among voters outside the party’s traditional base.
A key challenge for the SDLP will be translating Claire Hanna MP’s personal popularity and the party’s performance in Opposition into first-preference votes at the election next May.
Stormont reform is also expected to become an increasingly prominent part of the party’s political positioning. Claire Hanna MP recently warned that Northern Ireland could be in the “dying days of Stormont unless it is reformed”, arguing that public confidence may not survive another collapse or failure to form an Executive.
Despite improved polling, the electoral landscape remains challenging. The party will need to defend its existing Assembly representation while identifying realistic opportunities for gains, making candidate selection, transfer strategies and constituency-level performance particularly important.
Conference Agenda and Key Themes
The conference will begin with remarks from Colum Eastwood MP, followed by a panel discussion titled “To Derry and Beyond: Delivering Regional Balance”, highlighting the party’s focus on addressing economic and infrastructure disparities across Northern Ireland.
Other sessions throughout the day will focus on a range of policy issues, including:
Tackling the Far Right: Building a Politics of Hope
Ending Violence Against Women and Girls: From Awareness to Action
The Price of Division: Can Northern Ireland Afford a Divided Education System?
Housing Affordability and Long-Term Sustainability
In Conversation with Patsy McGlone MLA
Stormont Sources Live Recording
Claire Hanna MP’s Party Leader speech, scheduled for midday, is expected to be the central event of the conference. Her address is likely to provide the clearest indication yet of the themes the SDLP plans to take into the 2027 election campaign.
Looking Ahead
Overall, the conference is expected to signal the beginning of a shift from Opposition to election mode. Policy announcements, emerging manifesto themes and messaging around reform, delivery and political change may offer important insight into the campaign the SDLP intends to fight ahead of the May 2027 elections.