Two lesbians and one gay man were elected to the Belfast City Council, as announced by returning councillor, Mary Ellen Campbell of Sinn Féin.

Mary Ellen Campbell will be returning to the council, and will be joined by openly gay newcomers Julie Anne Corr of the Progressive Unionist Party and Jeff Dudgeon of the Ulster Unionists (pictured).

Campbell announced the news on Twitter, adding, “Aren’t the electorate amazing… Imagine no longer the only gay in the village.”

Newly elected Jeffrey Dudgeon is one of the best known LGBT rights activists in Northern Ireland. In 1982 he took a case to the European Court of Human Rights which resulted in homosexuality being decriminalised in Northern Ireland.

Julie Anne Corr is also an activist and serves as a board member of gay helpline Cara-friend.

Although she is openly gay, Corr has stated that she has other issues that she wants to tackle besides those that directly affect the LGBT community. She said, ‘”Whilst I am open about my sexuality, I will not let it define me or allow anyone to fit me into a neat category.”