Former UBP campaign chair David Sullivan is hoping that the Progressive Labour Party (PLP) Government succeeds in achieving at least one of its campaign promises in time for the next election - electoral reform.

Reducing the size of Parliament and adopting a single seat system will give the UBP a greater chance of winning the lion's share of the seats, he believes.

But he said reports that he is planning to stand as a candidate for the next General Election are premature.

The former campaign chairman of the United Bermuda Party (UBP) says that for now at least his party has "enough white males in the 45 to 50 age group".

"We probably don't need many more in the scheme of things."

Mr. Sullivan was replaced as campaign chair by 49-year-old business executive Terrent West some weeks ago, fuelling speculation that he may be about to make another bid for elected office.

Because of a changed political landscape since the 1998 General Election, he said parties which truly reflect the demographics of the country in terms of age, race, gender and other factors have a greater chance of electoral success.

While he's keeping an open mind on a possible candidacy and has been approached by some constituencies, Mr. Sullivan said he is keeping watch on political events in the meantime.

"I am surveying the landscape as it unfolds, particularly with regard to single seats (electoral reform) and if the opportunity presents itself I would offer myself as a candidate."

His view is that the ruling Progressive Labour Party (PLP) would actually fare better during the next election under the current dual seat system than the single seat system, with a smaller sized parliament, it wants to replace it with.

The UBP would have to maintain all the 14 seats it now holds as well as capture at least another eight in order to get back into power, an "unrealistic" goal in any democracy, he reasoned, but it becomes easier when the size of Parliament is reduced and single seats adopted.

Other potential candidates for the UBP were also adopting a wait and see attitude, he said.

Since Government announced plans for electoral reform there had been a "higher degree of reservation" about moving ahead in the candidate selection process, until they know what system the elections will be held under, he said. With the process of electoral reform still far from complete, potential candidates are well aware that if the revamped system is in place in time, a "whole new set of rules" and electoral map will prevail, Mr. Sullivan said.

He pointed out that parliamentarians on both sides of the House were facing the same problem and did not want to make a firm commitment until they knew what the rules were going to be.

But the UBP is geared up to fight the election under the old rules just in case.

"Every constituency as we know it has to be ready. What happens after (electoral reform) becomes a nightmare for both parties" when changes will have to be made and some candidates dropped.

Meanwhile, the new campaign chair, Terrent West says that good ideas and a committed slate of candidates are reasons for optimism about the results of the next general election.

He denied that there were a lot of potential candidates who were holding out.

"We have a very committed group of candidates whose first priority is for the UBP to win the election and will work where best suits the party," he told The Royal Gazette.

He said many people had come forward as potential candidates because of their concern about the management of the public's affairs.

Mr. West, the president of Windward Management Ltd, headed up the party's Pembroke West Central branch for three years after returning home from studies in 1985 and contested a Paget West primary in 1991.