The outcome of the Northern Ireland assembly election appears too close to call, early results indicate.

The people of the province are awaiting the results in the elections to the devolved assembly.

The 108 MLAs will be elected using the single transferable vote electoral system - with some results possible later today and the rest following on Friday.

Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams was one of the first victors - holding on to his Belfast West seat on the first count.

"We asked people to endorse the risks we were taking for the peace process, we stood on our record in the assembly and the executive," he said after topping the poll.

Of the first eight seats to be declared, the DUP took four, with the Ulster Unionists and Sinn Fein both securing two.

Returned for the DUP were MLAs including the Rev Ian Paisley and his son Ian Junior.

"Today there has been a nail hammered very hard into the coffin of the Belfast Agreement," said Paisley Junior.

The Ulster Unionists also received a welcome eight per cent boost in votes for Michael McGimspey in South Belfast.

The early indications show the election could be heading to a nail-biting finish. A poll for Irish broadcaster RTE found that one in four voters said they had given their first preference votes to the Ulster Unionists or the Democratic Unionists.

Sinn Fein appeared to have out-manoeuvred the SDLP, taking 20 per cent compared to the moderates' 16 per cent.

Even once the votes are counted it is unlikely that there will be a rapid resumption of devolved government.

It is thought that turnout was between 50 per cent and 60 per cent in the majority of constituencies.

Signs that both sides of the sectarian divide are sliding to the extremes could push the prospect of a settlement even further from the government's grasp.

Under the rules the Stormont assembly has six weeks to name a first and deputy first minister before new elections are triggered.

Alternatively the UK government may re-suspend the assembly to buy more time for negotiations.

The election comes at a critical time in the peace process following rows over IRA decommissioning and a failure to reach agreement on so-called normalisation issues.

All sides have campaigned hard despite the suspension, with the government hoping the result will help break the stalemate in the province.

Whilst the UK government has kept out of the politics of the debate, the secretary of state stressed that the Good Friday "is the only way ahead".

In the 1998 election the Ulster Unionists won 28 of the 108 seats, the SDLP took 24, the DUP gained 20 and Sinn Fein held 18.

The DUP is battling to replace the UUP as the largest unionist party and Sinn Fein is attempting to replace the SDLP as the major pro-unification party.

Negotiations on restoring the power-sharing executive are likely to resume following the election.

But the lack of firm details about the IRA's last act of decommissioning remain a major stumbling block.

A strong showing for the DUP, which has ruled out a return to power sharing, could deal a blow to the peace process.

Ian Paisley has dismissed talks of reviving the cross-party government and will instead press for a fundamental renegotiation of the Good Friday Agreement.

He is likely to be joined in that stance by up to six rebel Ulster Unionists.

Similarly a boost for Sinn Fein will make the early stages of the negotiations more difficult for moderate unionists.