Convincing the ruling party's grassroots to support the mission to remove Premier Jennifer Smith from office is an "uphill struggle", backbencher Wayne Perinchief admitted yesterday.

Mr. Perinchief, the chief and most vocal supporter of the ruling party's backbench move to oust the Premier, told The Royal Gazette yesterday that a number of the Progressive Labour Party's branches had written letters of support to Ms Smith following a parliamentary caucus vote on her leadership in May.

Since then, the rebels have had to work hard to win over the party organisers, who are most likely to be delegates at the party's annual conference in November.

Backbencher Arthur Hodgson is actively mulling a challenge for the leadership at that conference where top party posts will be decided by delegates selected by the branches, Parliamentarians and Senators.

Mr. Perinchief believes that even if the leadership challenge fails at the conference, the Governor would have to act if a majority of PLP parliamentarians inform him that they have withdrawn their support from the Premier - leaving open the possibility that a PLP party leader and the Premier could end up being two different persons.

Unlike the United Bermuda Party's constitution, which leaves leadership selection up to elected Parliamentarians, the PLP's constitution gives the ordinary members a hand in choosing the leader through their delegates at the leadership conference.

Mr. Perinchief agreed, when asked, that the expectation of the PLP's grassroots supporters was that the person they elect as party leader would be Premier, and that he and his fellow dissidents would be violating that expectation.

"We are very aware of that and we have had meetings with the party members," he said. "We have met with a number of delegates and each of us have met with our branches. They have listened and they have voted to support the Premier. That's what we expected." He said he believed that all but "maybe one or two" of the branches had reaffirmed their support for the Premier in writing, but the dissidents are undeterred.

"We are now seeking the hearts and minds of the delegates. It's the very process I am now engaged in - by education and by informing them."

The aim was to move from "a position of blind loyalty to one where people become more introspective. I am challenging them to think - to justify their loyalty instead of being led like sheep."

Ms Smith was asked to resign by members of the party's Parliamentary group in late May. She refused and the matter was put to a vote which resulted in a tie between the 18 members present. In the weeks that followed, the branches held meetings with their Parliamentary representatives and constituents to clarify exactly what had happened and gauge reaction from the grassroots.

Each branch was expected to submit a report of their meetings to the PLP central committee. Party chairman Neville Tyrell said last month that the Premier had a "vast amount" of support from the branches.

But Charles Daniels, the head of Mr. Hodgson's own Hamilton Parish branch, did not send in a report. Mr. Daniels said that he is still trying to assess feedback from his members and was planning to organise an open meeting.