Ralph Telford O'Neal, OBE (15 December 1933 – 11 November 2019) was a British Virgin Islander politician. He was the longest ever serving elected representative in the British Virgin Islands, and served as Chief Minister (when the office was so titled) or

Premier of the British Virgin Islands The Premier of the Virgin Islands is the head of government for the British Virgin Islands. As a British Overseas Territory, the Premier is appointed by the Governor on behalf of the British monarch, currently King Charles III. Until 2007, the h ...

for three terms.

Politics

Ralph O'Neal was first elected to represent the district for

Virgin Gorda Virgin Gorda () is the third-largest island (after Tortola and Anegada) and second-most populous of the British Virgin Islands (BVI). Geography Located at about 18 degrees, 48 minutes North, and 64 degrees, 30 minutes West, it covers an area o ...

and

Anegada Anegada is the northernmost of the British Virgin Islands (BVI), a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. It lies approximately north of Virgin Gorda. Anegada is the only inhabited British Virgin Island for ...

on 1 September 1975, and he held that seat continuously until the 2015 general election. He is the longest serving elected politician in British Virgin Islands history having served in the House of Assembly and Legislative Council for , and his 10 election victories (including one uncontested) are second only to

Lavity Stoutt Hamilton Lavity Stoutt (7 March 1929 – 14 May 1995) was a British Virgin Islander politician and the first and longest serving Chief Minister of the British Virgin Islands. He won five general elections (1967, 1979, 1986, 1991 and 1995) ...

in the Territory's political history. Ralph O'Neal indicated in 2014 that he would stand down at the 2015 general election. Ralph O'Neal was first appointed Chief Minister when Lavity Stoutt died in office on 14 May 1995. He then served as Chief Minister until the 1999 general election, which he won. His party would later lose the 2003 general election, but he would return to power as Premier (as the office was renamed) for the third and final time following a

landslide victory A landslide victory is an election result in which the victorious candidate or party wins by an overwhelming margin. The term became popular in the 1800s to describe a victory in which the opposition is "buried", similar to the way in which a geol ...

in the 2007 general election. He remained in office until 7 November 2011, after the

Virgin Islands Party The Virgin Islands Party (VIP) is a political party in the British Virgin Islands. It is presently led by Acting Premier Natalio Wheatley. It is the oldest active political party in the British Virgin Islands, and it has won more general elect ...

lost its majority following the 2011 general election. His combined 12 years as head of the elected Government is the second longest in the British Virgin Islands, behind only Lavity Stoutt. Ralph O'Neal also served as

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

in the British Virgin Islands on three occasions – more than any other politician. He first served as opposition leader for the United Party from 1986 to 1988. He then served in the role for the Virgin Islands party from 2003 to 2007, and then finally from 2011 to 2015. For most of his political career Ralph O'Neal was a member of the

, and he led the party from the time of Lavity Stoutt's death, until he stepped down as party leader and was replaced by

Julian Fraser Julian Fraser (born 5 July 1950) is a British Virgin Islander politician who formerly belonged to the opposition Virgin Islands Party in the British Virgin Islands, and in August 2018 formed a new party, Progressives United. He is the current L ...

. However, like most BVI politicians, Ralph O'Neal has "

crossed the floor Crossed may refer to: * ''Crossed'' (comics), a 2008 comic book series by Garth Ennis * ''Crossed'' (novel), a 2010 young adult novel by Ally Condie * "Crossed" (''The Walking Dead''), an episode of the television series ''The Walking Dead'' S ...

". He contested his first election, the 1971 general election, unsuccessfully on behalf of the

VI Democratic Party The VI Democratic Party (VIDP or DP) is a nodefunctpolitical party of the British Virgin Islands. It was originally formed by Dr Q. William Osborne during the first session of the Legislative Council of the British Virgin Islands under the ne ...

. He then ran for office twice as an independent candidate before joining the Virgin Islands Party. Then, in 1983, he left to join the ruling United Party, and contested the 1986 general election on behalf of the United Party. He later rejoined the Virgin Islands Party in 1988 to take up a Ministerial position in Lavity Stoutt's government and was a member of the Virgin Islands party ever since.

Personal

Ralph O'Neal was educated at

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

where he studied economics. He was also property owner and developer in the British Virgin Islands. Apart from his property investments, O'Neal had a number of other commercial interests during his life before serving in the House of Assembly under the Ralph O'Neal Group of Companies. In October 2016 O'Neal was flown overseas for emergency medical treatment after reportedly suffering a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

. O'Neal died at his home in the McNamara area of

Tortola Tortola () is the largest and most populated island of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. It has a surface area of with a total population of 23,908, with 9,400 residents in ...

on 11 November 2019.

Electoral history

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Oneal, Ralph T. 1933 births 2019 deaths Leaders of the Opposition (British Virgin Islands) Members of the House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Virgin Gorda Premiers of the British Virgin Islands United Party (British Virgin Islands) politicians VI Democratic Party politicians Virgin Islands Party politicians