At the beginning of a new year, it is common for pundits and analysts to speculate about the political challenges that will inevitably arise in the months ahead.

No political party faces a greater challenge, and indeed a more existential one, than the Ulster Unionist Party.

January is the month when the current leader, Mike Nesbitt, said he would decide his future.

Will he stay or will he go? That is the question that has dogged the party since Nesbitt made those comments to the Give My Head podcast back in the summer of 2025.

Denis Bradley: Informers, the dirty war and the realities of revealing ‘the truth’

Cormac Moore: 50 years on from Kingsmill, both Britain and the IRA have questions to answer

Since then, two contenders have emerged as potential replacements: deputy leader Robbie Butler, and newcomer Jon Burrows.

Both have different power bases in the party and offer two very........

© The Irish News