National Security Minister Wayne Perinchief is bullish on his chances of winning the Smith’s South seat at the general election.At a press conference announcing his candidacy, Mr Perinchief dismissed the idea that he was “cannon fodder” in an Opposition stronghold, and said that he was confident of electoral victory.Mr Perinchief will be taking on Cole Simons, who has represented the district since 1998, and independent candidate David Tavares, former branch chairman for the United Bermuda Party.In 2007, Mr Simons garnered 673 votes against the ruling party’s candidate Jane Correia who received 243 votes.“Of the three candidates vying for the privilege to serve in this constituency, I am confident that with my record of service, the accomplishments of the Government over 14 years and our determination to stand strong for Bermudians, the challenge will end just as it did for me in 1998 with a victory for the Progressive Labour Party.”He reminded the media that he and former Minister Neletha Butterfield had succeeded in ousting a “sitting UBP Minister and perhaps the most tenacious MP we’ve ever had”.Mr Perinchief was referring to his first electoral victory in 1998 when he was elected as the MP for Pembroke West Central which had been held by former Deputy Premier Jerome Dill and former Minister Ann Cartwright DeCouto both long time stalwarts of the United Bermuda Party which had been in power for 30 years.“It was an area that was traditionally held by the UBP in perpetuity. There had never been a Progressive Labour Party candidate in that area of Pembroke. Neletha Butterfield and myself didn’t let that deter us, we went in and we successfully held that area.”He was subsequently re-elected in 2003 and 2007 by the voters of Pembroke Central.“I see a chance to go toe to toe on issues and experience and to successfully demonstrate to the voters of constituency eight that in me they have a hardworking and committed representative,” he said.The Minister said he was bringing “over 30 years of experience to the table” and his record as National Security Minister included consistent support of the Police, and tough legislation against gangs and the proceeds of crime.“In border control, we’ve made Bermuda more welcoming while keeping our borders safe. We recognise how important real estate is to this economy and we’ve taken decisive action to stimulate their marketing — removing licensing requirements in some cases and renewing the potential for non-Bermudians to purchase property.”His Ministry had also contributed to stimulating the economy, he said, by relaxing visa requirements for BRIC countries.Mr Perinchief also touted with some humour what he said were his personal connections to the area. Besides owning a house in the area, he has family and friends there including a “friend of one of my former wives”.His canvassing would start with “my 300 strong supporters first” and then move on to attempt to persuade the other constituents.“To those people who are inclined to not vote for a PLP candidate, I want to say that the position I hold and what I bring to the table stretches across borders when it comes to the political landscape. And public safety and security is really a non-political and should be a non-politicised issue,” he said.“Bermuda’s security is everybody’s security. I’ve always taken that point of view. I’ve never taken any constituency to be more worthy than another. For the whole 30 years as a policeman there was impartiality and as a politician and Minister of National Security, that’s always been my point of view. So really, the ‘them and us’ syndrome does not apply to my constituency.”