Emma Little-pengelly

Emma Little-Pengellyis a Northern Irish barrister and Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician serving as the deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland since February 2024.

She has been a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Lagan Valley since May 2022, when she was co-opted (appointed) to replace then-DUP party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, who declined to take up his seat following the 2022 election.

She previously served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Belfast South constituency in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from 2017 until 2019, when she lost her seat to Claire Hanna of the SDLP, and as an MLA for the Belfast South constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.