An Alliance councillor in Lisburn and Castlereagh has been selected to replace Patricia O'Lynn as the party's MLA for North Antrim.
Sian Mulholland will take up the post after Ms O'Lynn resigned to begin a new role at Queen's University Belfast.
Ms Mulholland, who lives in Glenavy, has been an Alliance councillor for the past eight years.
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She was first co-opted onto Belfast City Council in 2015 and held the seat in the 2019 local government elections.
Last year she quit her East Belfast seat and was co-opted onto Lisburn and Castlereagh council to replace David Honeyford after he was elected as an MLA for Lagan Valley.
Ms Mulholland said: "I am honoured to have been selected as the new Alliance MLA for North Antrim by local party members.
"I'd like to also pay tribute to Patricia O'Lynn, whose bold vision helped grow the party to unimaginable heights here in North Antrim.
"Last May, people across North Antrim put their faith in Alliance and the party has continually repaid that. I look forward to continuing that hard work and helping people with the issues that matter to them across the constituency.
"Coming from a rural village, I know those issues well, including roads infrastructure, transport, health, broadband and utilities, school amalgamations and community resources. Those are the bread and butter matters which impact people in North Antrim on a daily basis.
"But to deliver on those commitments, we need an Assembly and Executive restored. I will use my voice as MLA to push for that every day."
Ms Mulholland's husband Kieran was a Sinn Fein councillor on Causeway Coast and Glens council until he lost his seat in 2019.
The couple, who have two children, received well wishes from across the political spectrum when they married in 2018.
But DUP peer Peter Weir faced criticism after joking online about whether they would have "SDLP or Green babies".
The former Education Minister said it was intended as a "tongue-in-cheek comment" and apologised for any offence caused before wishing the couple well.
Ms O'Lynn became North Antrim's first female MLA and first Alliance MLA when she was elected last year after a surge of transfers saw her unseat DUP stalwart Mervyn Storey.
Alliance leader Naomi Long had said the MLA's departure from Stormont was "very sad" but she understood the "frustration" of not having a functioning Stormont Executive and Assembly.
Mrs Long said she was "delighted" to welcome Ms Mulholland to the party's Assembly team.
"She has a wealth of political and community experience, having served as a councillor and worked in both the youth and arts sectors," she added.
"I hope that she will have an opportunity to put those skills to good use on behalf of her constituents in North Antrim in a working Assembly, sooner rather than later."
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