PLP LEADERSHIP: LIVE! PAULA COX NEXT LEADER

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11.15pm: Paula Cox spoke briefly at a press conference but gave little away about her plans. She said she was pleased but recognized their was a lot of work to do both to heal the divisions within the party after a long campaign and to move the country forward.

"When you have an election that is prolonged for a long period you turn up a lot of stuff. My job is to really deal with community and national issues. We also have business to take care of within the party to make us stronger and more cohesive.”

Deputy Premier Derrick Burgess said he would bring 'hard work, hard work, hard work' to the table.

Both are expected to be sworn in at Government House tomorrow.

9:56pm: Press conference about to be held.

9:55pm: Derrick Burgess is the deputy leader.

9:40pm: So here we go again - the deputy leader needs 85 votes to get the nod. The second vote is being done now.

9:35pm: Derrick Burgess got the most votes with 68, followed by Terry Lister with 59, followed by Michael Weekes with 21. Walter Roban received 15 votes while Randy Horton got 6. But there is going to be a re-vote between the top three - that is Mr. Burgess, Mr. Lister and Mr. Weekes.

9:20pm: The other nominees for deputy are Terry Lister, Michael Weekes, Randy Horton and Walter Roban. But Mr. Burgess has the lions share of the vote so far.

9:15pm: Derrick Burgess looks to be on track to be deputy - they are just counting the votes.

9:10pm: Randy Horton and Derrick Burgess are defintely two of the runners for the deputy post. We are trying to find out if there are any more.

9pm: We are just waiting for the deputy leader to be announced now - should be any minute.

8:50pm: It's official - Paula Cox has won. She received 124 votes, Terry Lister got 39 votes while Dale Butler received 2 votes.

8:45pm A big cheer went up a few minutes ago as Paula Cox passed the number of votes needed to become the next leader of the PLP. The result has not been made official but all indications are that Ms. Cox has won comfortably and become the Premier of Bermuda.

8:41pm: Votes are being counted now and it looks like Cox has got it.

8:25pm: Ok, Mr. Lister has finished now. That's three fairly short speeches from the leadership candidates all wrapped up now. Lawyer Larry Scott is back behind the mic.

8:15pm: Mr. Butler has finished now and is replaced on the stand by Terry Lister. Mr. Lister is addressing the delegates.

8:05pm: Dale Butler is now addressing the delegates dressed in his sailor's hat. He's calling for "all hands on deck".

8:02pm: Now we have whooping and applause coming from inside the hall.

8pm: There's spontaneous outbreaks of applause from the hall as Ms. Cox addresses the delegates.

7:55pm: Leadership favourite Paula Cox has taken to the stage and starting speaking to the delegates. She appears to be the first to make her speech.

7:20pm:  Right - they are all heading back inside the hall to continue with the party business. We understand the speeches by the the three leadership candidates don't start for another 40 minutes - so still a while until the real business begins.

7:10pm: Looks like the first drinks break of the night as the MPs and delegates emerge from the Devonshire Rec for a snack and a chat. There's plenty of chatter in the food tent now and plenty of hand shaking and smiles as the rain continues to hold off.

6pm:  There's around 200 people inside the Rec. Not all will get a vote. There's expected to be around 150 delegates plus the party officers and MPs who will get a vote. Senators, who have officially vacated their positions along with Dr. Brown, don't get a vote.
Last time - when Dr. Ewart Brown defeated Alex Scott four years ago — the result was 107 to 76 — a total of 183 voters. At least 50 per cent of the vote plus one is required for victory.

5.45pm: We can hear over the tannoy system that proceedings have begun. There's a whole host of preliminaries before the main event. Could be a long night.

5.35pm:  Dale Butler has just arrived on his bike. When he pulled into the car park he put on a sailor's hat and said "i feel great. I am the captain". Wearing a black suit and bright red tie he stopped briefly to talk to the media saying: "I hope I win but I will support whoever is elected."

No sooner had Mr. Butler asked if Terry Lister had arrived, Mr Lister pulled into the car park. Wearing a grey pin-stripped suit, green shirt and green tie Mr. Lister told the media: "I am confident I will win." Then he shook hands with Mr. Butler and the pair walked into Devonshire Rec.

5.30pm:  The two car parking spaces reserved for Dale Butler and Terry Lister are about the only empty spaces left in the car park. The two leadership contenders have not shown up yet to fill them. Who will be driving around in GP1 is the question on everyone's lips right now.

5.10pm: Mrs. Cox says she is taking nothing for granted. Asked what her priorities would be as leader and who she would have in the Cabinet she plays it cool.
"Let's wait and see if I'm elected first then there will be plenty of time to talk". Fair enough.
She's wearing a long blue dress, matching shoes and a splash of PLP colour with a green and yellow scarf. Just in case you're interested.

5.05pm: Paula Cox has just arrived in a silver taxi. 

5pm: Wayne Furbert has just arrived in green suit and matching green tie. The former UBP leader pretty clear on his allegiances tonight! Its a sea of green and white, with everyone showing their PLP colours. Michael Weekes - tipped as a possible wildcard candidate for deputy showed up a few minutes ago.

4.30pm: The official start time of the conference was 4pm but it doesn't seem to have got under way as yet. There's about 70 or so members down at Devonshire Rec, where a marquee has been set up. It's members only, obviously, so the media are gathered outside collecting whatever tidbits we can. None of the candidates are there as yet. Zane DeSilva is the only high profile parliamentary figure there right now. Others are starting to drift in. It could be as late as 11pm, we are told now, before the result is announced.

2pm:   Paula Cox is taking a more relaxed approach. We spoke with her husband Germain Mkeulu earlier and he said they were going for a walk, getting in the zone for later on.
"Today is the big day," he said. 

1pm:  You can't say Terry Lister is not trying. I just spoke to one of the delegates who says his team have been dropping leaflets and DVDs at delegates homes today. He is also reported to be doing the rounds on the doorstep trying to make his case.
That's on the heels of his full-oage ad in the RG today and a full round of media interviews.
The delegate we spoke to still planned to vote for Paula Cox. But they said Mr Lister's powers of persuasion may have worked on others.
If Paula Cox doesn't get it, the delegate told us, it will be because she hasn't matched Mr Lister's work rate on the campaign trail.


12pm: The actual conference starts at 4pm at Devonshire Rec, so I guess we are not technically 'live' just yet. 
There's a lot of party business to sort out, as well as elections for administrative positions, before the real business of the evening.
The three candidates will get to give one last speech, probably around 8pm, before the vote. 

11am: The countdown has begun. Dr. Ewart Brown has given his last speech as leader and has left the island to begin his 'detox' holiday. The candidates to replace him are making their final pitches to delegates, with a vote expected around 9pm tonight.
Paula Cox is the clear favourite. One senior PLP parlimentarian told us yesterday afternoon that they expect her to win with around 70-80 per cent of the vote.
Terry Lister remains confident and has been telling interviewers since last week that he believes he has it in the bag.
Dale Butler hasn't campaigned as vigorously and he is not expected to win - though he could be a contender for deputy leader. Randy Horton and Derrick Burgess are also vying for the deputy's role.