Running again as an Independent candidate
Member of Parliament for Newlands Alva Suckoo was officially nominated on Monday, 1 March as an Independent candidate for re-election in the Cayman Islands General Elections slated for 14 April 2021.
He was nominated by his daughter Janelle Suckoo and Aliyah Christian, daughter of his reelection campaign committee member Richard Christian.
Following his nomination, MP Suckoo said, "I was honoured and humbled today to accept the official nomination as an Independent candidate in the 2021 General Election on April 14. I will be seeking re-election to my third term in office, after representing the people of Newlands for the past 4 years."
MP Suckoo was first elected to represent the single member constituency of Newlands in 2017, which marked the first elections in the Cayman Islands run under the "One Man, One Vote" system. He was first elected in 2013 to serve as a Member of the Legislative Assembly representing the former mutiple member district of Bodden Town.
MP Suckoo has garnered the support of many of his constituency's younger voters, and his nominators reflected this demographic.
He said, "I was proud to be nominated by my daughter Janelle Suckoo and Aliyah Christian, daughter of my re-election campaign committee member Richard Christian. The young women who served as my nominators are representatives of the next generation of Caymanian leaders, and I am heartened by the support I’ve gained from young adults and new voters over the past four years, as well as the ongoing and stalwart support of my constituents of all ages."
Nominator Aliyah Christian gave her reasons for supporting MP Suckoo. She said, “For me I support Al, I think the top reason that stands out for me is that I saw politicians as kind of like unapproachable celebrities, but for him he is a very good listener, and someone who is open to supporting the youth, someone with a strong moral ground, which I feel is fading nowadays. And I think those are what stand out for me.”
Her father, Richard Christian, described his experience with MP Suckoo and the impression made over the past eight years.
He said, “In 2013, I actually didn’t vote for Al. But by getting to know him better, and with his first term seeing the policies he brought forward and just seeing him as a leader, I was encouraged by his first term and I supported him in the last election. This time around, even seeing him perform in the last four years again where he is even more polished. As my daughter said, Al stands for moral beliefs, which is very strong to me and my family. The fact that he has even said it publicly that he is doing law school not just for him but to be a better leader, better politician for this nation stands out to me. Just seeing the different motions that he has brought forward says a lot about his character and what he believes in terms of as a nation and for Caymanians, what needs to be done. So that’s why I support him. He has the experience, he has the moral grounding, and he believes in the youth, the next generation and really that’s what its about. Building for the future.”
MP Suckoo thanked his re-election committee members, and briefly outlined the focus of his campaign.
He said, "I deeply appreciated the support shown by the attendance of several of my campaign committee members and supporters. I’m looking forward to campaigning on my record and achievements as the representative for Newlands in Parliament. Much has been accomplished, but there is still work to be done."
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