Two people have been wounded in a shooting incident outside a polling station in County Derry. "We have first reports of a shooting incident at a polling station in Draperstown. It is understood that two people have been injured," said an RUC spokeswoman.
It is understood a gunman stepped out of a car near a primary school when voting was drawing to a close. One victim sustained a shoulder injury and another was struck in the arm. Both victims are being treated in hospital.
Voting ended at 10pm in the Westminster and local government elections in the North. A row erupted earlier tonight, after it was claimed that hundreds of voters could be disenfranchised because of huge queues at polling stations. Parties were reporting queues in West Tyrone, North Down, Mid Ulster, West Belfast and other areas. Most interest will focus on the inter-Unionist battle in the marginal seats of North Down, Strangford and South Antrim.
Voting followed what has been the most keenly contested and bitterly divided election campaign on record. The contest has been seen in many quarters as akin to a second referendum, this time on the implementation of the Good Friday Agreement. The three-way battle between Bríd Rodgers, Pat Doherty and Willie Thompson in West Tyrone is seen as the hardest of all 18 constituencies in which to predict a winner.
The Westminster elections traditionally attract a large turnout. The finely balanced nature of key seats is likely to result in a turnout of close to 80%. Unlike the rest of the UK, the results in the 18 Westminster constituencies will not be known until late tomorrow.
