The DUP is expecting to increase its parliamentary strength at Westminster further with the appointment of at least four members to the House of Lords.
Despite being the majority unionist party, with nine MPs to just one Ulster Unionist, and the fourth largest party in the Commons, the DUP is still without representation in the Lords.
However, party chiefs are satisfied that this anomaly will be ended with the announcement of a new list of working peers next month or in early July.
There is speculation that the former Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble might be made a peer in Queen Elizabeth's official birthday honours list, due on June 11th. Buckingham Palace and Downing Street confirmed that "working peers" are dealt with separately.
That suggests a further possible delay before prime minister Tony Blair resolves an issue on which the DUP has been pressing since its first landmark victory over the UUP in the 2003 Assembly elections.
DUP leader the Rev Ian Paisley's personal list of nominees is believed to be topped by his wife, Eileen, along with long-time friend and party president Jim McClure. Two others being tipped for peerages are DUP chairman Maurice Morrow and former Conservative MP Andrew Hunter, who took the DUP whip in the last parliament.
There is also speculation that a larger list of DUP nominees might include two former Ulster Unionist MPs - the Rev Martin Smyth, and William Ross, who lost his seat in 2001.