Kurt Vialet Tops Race; Nelly, Sanes, Positive And Francis — Along With Chucky — Back In

The makeup of the 32nd Legislature — at least on St. Croix — will look very similar to that of the 31st, except for one not-so-new face: Alicia “Chucky” Hansen.

All except one — Kenneth Gittens — of the senators who currently make up the 31st Legislature in St. Croix were elected today to serve new terms, and they will be joined by Mrs. Hansen, a veteran senator whose storied 2014 problems stymied her chances of getting back into the Senate that year.

The new order, according to V.I. Elections System results, sees Senator Kurt Vialet coming in first with a total of 5,667 votes, followed by Novelle Francis with a total 5,126. Coming in third was Mrs. Hansen with a total of 4,513 votes, followed by Sammuel Sanes with 4,497. Independent Senator Positive Nelson managed fifth place with 4,221 votes, and he was followed by Senator Nereida Rivera-O’Reilly in sixth place with a total of 4,175. In seventh place was Senator Neville James, who only eked out a victory by a mere 70 votes (the numbers may change once absentee ballots, along with walk-ins, which total less than 200 votes, are counted).

In a conversation with The Consortium tonight, Mr. Vialet said he was humbled that voters not only chose him for a second term, but also as the top vote-getter.

“I’m very, very humbled. It’s one thing to come first when you’re running for the first time, it’s another thing to run first after you’ve served. It means that the people of the Virgin Islands, specifically the people of St. Croix, have justified what you were able to accomplish in this two-year period, so I’m very, very humbled by the support that I received.”

Mr. Vialet praised his staff, who he says continues to work hard, and a committee that has been with him from the onset. And he thanked his family for being supportive throughout the process, noting that having family’s support was an important part of his success as a politician.

The senator said he would continue to work towards bettering the Virgin Islands. “This is my home, I was born here and I don’t have any place to go,” he said. “So I want to make sure that we have that quality of life, not only for me but for everybody in the Virgin Islands. And I think we are on that uphill trend in terms of St. Croix being able to bounce back.”

Asked about his colleague Mr. Gittens, who will most likely be out of the Senate come January, Mr. Vialet expressed disappointment, but said he was confident that Mr. Gittens’s skills would be utilized elsewhere in government. Perhaps in public safety, Mr. Vialet suggested. He noted their friendship dating back before they became senators, and praised Mr. Gittens for his work in the Senate.

Senator Novelle Francis, coming from the same law enforcement background as Mr. Gittens, said he was thankful and excited for being chosen for a second term to serve, but was “very, very disappointed,” with the outcome relative to Mr. Gittens.

Senator Nereida Rivera-O’Reilly expressed gratitude as well.

“I made it, it looks like,” she said. “I’m happy, excited and glad it’s over so I could go home and see who is winning on the national level.” On Mr. Gittens, she said,  “Yeah, I’m sad to see that. I was really hoping that we would all be back in, but the people have spoken and we will see. I will continue to do my best, and we have a lot of work to do.”

These interviews occurred outside the Elections System offices in Sunny Isle. Mr. James was not available for an interview. Neither was Mrs. Hansen, whose headquarters is located in Five Corners.

St. Thomas results were still being counted at time of writing.

LEGISLATURE OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS - ST. CROIX DISTRICT
          ST. CROIX
          (VOTE FOR)  7
           Kurt Vialet (DEM).  .  .  .  .  .  .  .     5,667   12.24
           Novelle E. Francis, Jr. (DEM).  .  .  .     5,126   11.07
           Alicia "Chucky" Hansen (IND) .  .  .  .     4,513    9.75
           Sammuel Sanes (DEM) .  .  .  .  .  .  .     4,497    9.72
           Positive T. A. Nelson (ICM)  .  .  .  .     4,221    9.12
           Nereida "Nellie" O'Reilly (DEM) .  .  .     4,175    9.02
           Neville James (DEM) .  .  .  .  .  .  .     4,100    8.86
           Kenneth L. Gittens (DEM)  .  .  .  .  .     4,030    8.71
           Terrence D. Joseph (DEM)  .  .  .  .  .     2,807    6.06
           Norman Jn Baptiste (IND)  .  .  .  .  .     1,726    3.73
           Robert B. Moorhead (REP)  .  .  .  .  .     1,647    3.56
           Patricia James (IND).  .  .  .  .  .  .     1,567    3.39
           Danny Emmanuel (IND).  .  .  .  .  .  .       991    2.14
           Duane Howell (IND)  .  .  .  .  .  .  .       770    1.66
           WRITE-IN (IND).  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .       448     .97