The strength of TUV's vote in local government elections will be a "barometer of real opposition" to the Northern Ireland Protocol, party leader Jim Allister has said.
Launching their manifesto, Mr Allister said voting TUV would be "injecting necessary strength into others" as he questioned whether the DUP will revive Stormont after the election.
He said restoring power-sharing would be an acceptance of the protocol, which he argued is causing the Union to be "dismantled before our very eyes".
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TUV is standing 46 candidates for the poll on May 18. It secured six seats in the last local government election in 2019, losing seven won in 2014.
But this time the party will be hoping to capitalise on a boost in support in last year's Assembly election which saw its vote share increase to 7.6% compared with 2.6% in the 2017 Stormont poll.
Since last year the DUP has been blocking devolved government in Northern Ireland in protest against post-Brexit trade barriers with Great Britain under the protocol.
The UK government and European Union recently signed the Windsor Framework in a bid to address issues with the protocol.
The DUP has continued to raise concerns, but there is speculation the party may restore power-sharing in the autumn.
In last year's election, Sinn Féin overtook the DUP to become the largest party at Stormont and is now entitled to hold the First Minister post in the Executive.
Speaking at the Dunadry Hotel in Antrim, Mr Allister said TUV "will neither bow the knee to foreign law or Sinn Féin rule".
He described the "clarity and certainty" of TUV's message, saying that voters "needn't worry or fret about the TUV's position wilting after the election".
Mr Allister said: "It's very clear when you listen to some commentators that there is not such certainty with certain other parties.
"I hear commentators say, 'When the election's over, the DUP position - whatever exactly it is - will soften. They will return to Stormont.'
"Let me be very clear - to return to Stormont is to accept the protocol.
"The price of Stormont now is to implement that very protocol that is dismantling the Union. That is an impossible price for anyone who cares about the Union to pay."
He added: "The barometer of real opposition to this protocol and the ongoing dismantling of our Union will be measured in significant measure by the strength of the TUV vote.
"And that will have the consequence of putting necessary strength and holding necessary strength - and injecting necessary strength - into others."
Addressing TUV's manifesto launch, Mr Allister posed the question: "Who in this election can you trust?"
He continued: "Trust should be at the core of politics. Who can you trust to stand their ground if you're a unionist concerned about the protocol?
"Who can you trust not to empower Sinn Féin? Who can you trust not to bow the knee to foreign law and implement it through Stormont?
"I think the answer to that is abundantly clear."
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