Hugh John Simpson Gibson (born August 1945) is a unionist politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

.

Gibson studied at Saintfield Secondary School and Shaftesbury House Tutorial College, before working as a farmer

Farmer

A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, who raises living organisms for food or raw materials, generally including livestock husbandry and growing crops, such as produce and grain...

 and becoming a member of the Orange Order. He joined the Democratic Unionist Party

Democratic Unionist Party

The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...

 (DUP) and was elected to Ards Borough Council in 1981

Northern Ireland local elections, 1981

Elections for local government were held in Northern Ireland in 1981.-Overall:-Belfast:...

. He held his seat until he stood down in 1997

Northern Ireland local elections, 1997

Elections for local government were held in Northern Ireland on 21 May 1997, shortly after the 1997 general election across the entire United Kingdom.-Overall:-Belfast:-References:...

, serving as Mayor of Ards in 1987/88.

At the Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1982, Gibson was elected in North Down

North Down (Assembly constituency)

North Down is a constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.The seat was first used for a Northern Ireland-only election for the Northern Ireland Assembly, 1973...

. He contested Strangford

Strangford (UK Parliament constituency)

Strangford is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons.-Boundaries:The seat was created in boundary changes in 1983, as part of an expansion of Northern Ireland's constituencies from 12 to 17, and was predominantly made up from parts of North Down...

 at the 1983 UK general election, taking second place, with 30% of the votes cast. In the mid-1990s, he served as Vice-Chairman of the DUP.

In August 2010, Gibson was appointed to the Northern Ireland Assembly

Northern Ireland Assembly

The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...

 as the replacement for Jim Shannon

Jim Shannon

Richard James Shannon is a unionist politician from Northern Ireland.-Early life:Shannon was educated at Ballywalter Primary School and Coleraine Academical Institution. He was in the Ulster Defence Regiment in 1973-75 and 1976–77 and was awarded the General Service Medal. He served in the Royal...

. He did not stand in the 2011 Assembly election in which the DUP held three of its four seats, losing Gibson's to the Ulster Unionist Party

Ulster Unionist Party

The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...

.