Alicia ‘Chucky’ Hansen Back For 2016 Senate Race; Full List Of Candidates Revealed

ST. CROIX — Alicia “Chucky” Hansen will compete for a Senate seat come this November, according to documents filed with the Elections System of the Virgin Islands.

The documents, seen here and here, unearth a myriad of new filings for the senate race specifically. They reveal that all of the senators from the St. Croix district will be back in the contest this November, and in an about-turn, Senator Nereida Rivera-O’Reilly, who told The Consortium recently that she had grown tired of the Senate, will run for reelection.

Mrs. Hansen lost her Senate seat during the 2014 General Elections because of multiple odds stacked against her — not the least of which being an epic battle waged in the territory’s local and federal courts surrounding questions of moral turpitude and whether she was fit to run for public office. The senator was later pardoned by former Governor John P. de Jongh and, with incessant persistence, attempted to seek reelection by waging a respectable write-in campaign.

It was not successful.

But Mrs. Hansen is expected to win her Senate seat this year, based on her past victories and a rabid following that she has remained attuned with even while out of the Legislature, through a Saturday talk show on WSTX, A.M. 970. And Mrs. Hansen has been one of the most effective campaigners here, and knows how to effectively communicate with a great portion of the electorate.

She will face new challenges, however. The Virgin Islands has changed since the 2014 General Elections as residents have become more informed, and they will be looking to Mrs. Hansen to state clearly her vision for the territory if she were to be elected. And along with the stiff challenges that she should expect from the sitting senators, newcomers pose a threat as well.

Yet, Mrs. Hansen, a seasoned politician, has been at the top of the political class for years. She has won numerous bids and was only out of office when she attempted a gubernatorial run and lost, and in 2014, when she became mired in an overwhelming case that greatly diminished her chances.

With none of the aforementioned obstacles impeding her path, and barring any surprises, Mrs. Hansen is expected to sail to victory.

Some new names for Senate in the St. Croix district include Terrence D. Joseph, George Moore, Patricia James, Robert B. Moorehead, Duane Howell, Agustin Q. Salas, Troy Mason, Anselma John-Ayala and others.

In the St. Thomas-St. John district, the usual suspects are seeking reelection, but Senator Clifford Graham, long rumored to stay out of the race, is not on the ballot. At-Large senator Almando “Rock” Liburd won’t seek reelection either.

New candidates for the Legislature in the St. Thomas-St. John district include Bruce C. Flamon, Brian A. Smith, Dwayne Degraff, Kevin A. Rodriguez, Ivy K. Moses, Margaret Price, Margaret PriceStephen M. Frett, Patrick S. Sprauve, Maxwell A. Carty and others.