 In the early 1990s, he left the UUP and was later re-elected as an independent Unionist.In 1996, standing for the 'Independent Templeton' ticket, he was an unsuccessful candidate in the Northern Ireland Forum election in South Antrim.He was elected as an independent in the 1998 Northern Ireland Assembly election, when he formed the United Unionist Coalition (UUC) with other anti-Good Friday Agreement unionists.