Born in Northern Ireland, on May 27, 1965, Edwin Poots is best known for being a politician. "They [party members] have made their choice and I respect that," he said. Northern Ireland Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots has been elected leader of the Democratic Unionist Party. He said he had been "tried and tested over many years in political office" and had a plan to "reinvigorate unionism". The Stormont agriculture minister, who is an evangelical Christian creationist, beat more moderate Westminster MP Sir Jeffrey Donaldson by 19 votes to 17. Mr Poots is well-regarded among many of his DUP colleagues, but outside of the party his public utterances make him a more divisive character, particularly among nationalists. Edwin poots has beat sir jeffrey donaldson to replace northern ireland's outgoing first minister arlene foster as the democratic unionist party leader. Read about our approach to external linking. He said he wants to ensure that there is not the "unionist bickering that we have had in the past" and "I will encourage all unionists to work with me". Mon 11 Nov 2013 10.25 EST. East Antrim MP Sammy Wilson declined to say which candidate he had voted for, but congratulated Mr Poots and Mrs Bradley. Mr Poots became an MLA (Member of the Legislative Assembly) for the Lagan Valley constituency in 1998 and has also served on Lisburn City Council. EDWIN Poots has been elected leader of the DUP after being rival Sir Jeffrey Donaldson by two votes. Following a decade of sympathetic coverage by journalists and commentators pushing the narrative that the Democratic Unionist Party was truly interested in "outreach" to moderate pro-union or constitutionally agnostic voters in the north-east of the country, to most observers it seems that last Friday's selection of Edwin Poots as the group's new leader has very He succeeds Arlene Foster, who steps down as party leader on 28 May and will then leave her role as NI first minister at the end of June. Edwin Poots Wiki Edwin Poots was born on 27 May, 1965 in Lisburn, United Kingdom Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating Affairs, Career, Networth & Facts He beat his rival Westminister leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, in a The widely anticipated move by Mr Poots comes 24 hours after Mrs Foster announced her intention to stand down as party leader and Stormont First Minister. The widely anticipated move by Mr Poots comes 24 Why doesn't Japan cancel the Tokyo Olympic Games? There has been concern in the past that it looked like the DUP's Westminster grouping seemed to have too much power and too much sway. He was a senior negotiator for the DUP during talks to restore devolution following its collapse in the wake of the RHI scandal. Since then Mr Poots has built up a wealth of government experience, holding various Executive posts over the years - Culture Minister in 2007, Environment Minister in 2009, Health Minister in 2011 and Agriculture Minister last year. For Edwin Poots, this has been a lifelong ambition for him. Polling numbers predicting a jump in support for rival Jim Allister's TUV also spooked many DUP representatives. Earlier this year, Mr Poots briefly stepped aside from his Agriculture post while recovering from cancer surgery. On Thursday, Mr Poots announced his intention to stand for the leadership of the DUP. Want the biggest political stories sent straight to you? 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