Ascension : General Election Ascension Island
Submitted by The Islander (Ascension Island Government) 09.10.2008 (Article Archived on 23.10.2008)

Campaign statements have been received from the following candidates

Georgina Benjamin

My name is Georgina Benjamin otherwise known as Georgie and married to a St Helenian. I went with my husband to St Helena in 1983 and remained there until 2004 and then on to Ascension Island. During the twenty one years on St Helena I was a member of Legislative Council and served on the following committees:-Finance, Chairman of Education, and Social Services. Amongst other things I was Chairman of the SH News Media Board, a member of the Land Planning and Appeals Committee, Coroner, a long standing active member of the St Helena Disabled Persons Aid Society and a Lay Advocate. Since coming to Ascension I have continued serving the community as a Lay Advocate.

 I am an ardent supporter of democracy which must demonstrate fairness, openness and transparency.  Sadly such actions have not been exercised for some time on Ascension and we have been left wandering what has been going on behind closed doors.  Now we are about to have democracy restored, once again and a much welcomed Island Council with the assurance that those Councillors elected are there to represent you and your interests.  Where an Island Council will hold public consultation meetings to discuss matters that concern your quality of life on Ascension and where you can contact the individual Councillors should you require help or advice on issues that Council may be able to assist.

The job of an Island Councillor may not be, at times, an easy task but I consider this to be a very worthy and challenging task and I am ready to serve you as a member of the Island Council and will endeavour to carry out my responsibilities to the best of my ability on your behalf but to do this I l need your vote on polling Day 14^th October 2008. I also hope that there will be a good turn out from all the voters regardless of whom you vote for.

Cyril Leo

I have decided to be a candidate for the general election, and I think by now most residents on Ascension will know what I stand for; basically I believe that, given the opportunity, I can make a positive contribution within our society as an elected representative.  Bearing in mind what has gone before in relation to elected representation on Ascension, it remains to be seen just what can be achieved on behalf of the taxpayer.  However, the fact that I am willing to stand for election clearly signify my optimism.

Still in its infancy, democracy on Ascension was short-lived; the UK government has since urged the people of Ascension to give it another chance.  Thanks to the nominations of eight candidates, each member of the electorate will be given the opportunity, or option, to exercise their democratic right on 14 October 2008. 

Democracy deserves serious consideration along with respect and time to develop and mature. We can choose to move beyond the negativity and rise above the apathy.

The candidates have taken the first eight steps toward restoring democratic representation on Ascension and provide the taxpayers with a voice in local Government.  The next 671 steps, be it forward or not, will be decided by each one of us that are eligible to vote.

Ann Miller

For those of you who don’t know me well, I am Ann Miller originally from Brighton. I am a 35 year old mother and a Building Surveyor with a degree in Hotel and Tourism as well as Building surveying. I am told that my better characteristics are that I am fair and reasonable, listen and morally do the right thing. I enjoy cooking, diving and swimming and my favourite TV shows are Casualty, Holby city and Strictly Come Dancing and my favourite meal from the VC is chicken dinner. I thought I should put a small bit about myself and my views to let people know me better.

Governments and councils don't have all the answers. But if they have the right values they can make a real difference. Trusting people, promoting responsibility, cherishing our individuality and our Island's unique character; Equalities, honesty and fairness - these are the values of the overwhelming majority of us.

Though the majority of us work for a few large employers who take care of our working needs, there is a huge difference that the council can make to help improve the work/life balance of us all. The council needs to address the legislation issues and lead the administration, to provide the quality services that we require to live (and enjoy) our lives on Ascension.

As a new mother of an Ascension baby (Felicity) who will be brought up on Ascension, I am totally committed to doing my bit to ensure that our community provides the best possible environment possible for family life. That to me means living in a safe, fair and equal society that has excellent services provided by government for all its community.

Obviously there is a long way to go to achieve all of this, but as the saying goes - the longest journey starts with a single step. I’m taking that first step by standing for council, help me to move us towards a better future VOTE ANN MILLER on Tuesday.

Dear All,

I am pleased to have accepted nomination to stand for election as a member of the forthcoming Ascension Island Council.  Below I have provided a brief personal and political introduction for the Ascension Island electorate.  This introduction I hope will be helpful in the run up to polling day and in your choosing of councillors.

As many of you already are aware, I was born in Jamestown on St Helena Island.  I schooled primarily on St Helena and several years also in the United Kingdom.  Following on from this I studied Telecommunications, Electronics & Electrical Engineering in Higher Education at the Gloucestershire College of Arts and Technology, England, from 1992 to 1996.

Based in Gloucestershire, England, I joined HighWater Designs Ltd in June 1994 in a Software Test and Engineering role.  HighWater specialised in research and design projects and products for digital printing, data format conversion, data compression algorithms and high-end digital hardware design.

Whilst at HighWater I held the position of Product Release Manager.  This role involved core technical responsibilities for all product releases, project specification, development and lead and commercial responsibilities.  I ceased employment with HighWater in December 2005

My employment commenced with VT Communications (VTC) in January 2006 as a Communications Engineer.  The post typically involves working with commercial high power Short Wave Radio Frequency transmitters and British MOD defence communications systems. 

On Ascension Island I am contracted to VTC and am accompanied by my family.  Kate and I married in July 2000 and we have two children, Alexander aged five and Lauren aged three.

I have a genuine interest in politics and this has been true for many years as my friends will confirm.  With the event of the council elections this October I felt that the time had arrived to positively involve myself and hopefully be of benefit to Ascension’s population in the process.

Should I be elected as a councillor, my fundamental aims are as follows.

• Represent the electorate of Ascension in a constructive and proactive manner.


• To work towards a fair balance of public services versus costs of said services.


• Provide appropriately open and transparent explanation to governmental policies.


• Participate in providing good governance for the benefit of the population.

In conclusion, I would if elected be here to assist you the electorate, through the political means at the disposal of a councillor.  If you would like to discuss relevant matters further then please do contact me.

Yours faithfully

Howard H Peters.