Anyone fed up of all the fighting can breathe a sigh of relief after Paula Cox pledged the divisiveness will be turned down if she becomes Premier.

The Finance Minister — whose quiet demeanour couldn't be much more different than the outspoken outgoing Premier Ewart Brown — says people can look forward to a calmer Bermuda under her watch than the often fractious one they've got used to in the past four years.

"For me, what the Country needs is someone who is going to help heal some of the divisions and move Bermuda forward," Ms Cox said when asked to single out one thing she'd do differently to Dr. Brown.

"We've got a lot of work ahead; we've got a lot of challenges. We need to talk about hot issues without a lot of the drama."

And while race issues aren't going to be swept under the carpet, the rows which have been a recurring theme under Dr. Brown's leadership seem sure to become less heated.

"I think race relations still have a long way to go. We have got to continue to turn the volume down and sit down in caucus and talk," she said.

"We usually get some progress when we talk about issues on an issue basis."

Programmes and legislation will be considered to level the playing field, she said, pointing to statistics showing blacks are still not getting their fair share of good jobs. But she said that doesn't mean the Workforce Equity Bill, which would have introduced heavy fines for companies blocking the progress of blacks, will be brought back into play three years after it disappeared.

Ms Cox's supporters are quick to stress her more mellowed approach doesn't make her a pushover. They say she regularly shows quiet strength behind the scenes, such as when she pushed through tough legislation on work permits and term limits. She's also not unknown to deliver the kind of speeches people are more accustomed to hearing from Dr. Brown. At a PLP rally on the eve of the last General Election, she declared herself a "lamb that has become a lion" before lambasting a United Bermuda Party proposal to grant Bermudian status to long-term residents.

"You scandalise my name and you see my reaction," she said that night. "Do not trifle with me or trifle with my party or I will change up in a flash."

Some have suggested rivals Terry Lister and Dale Butler may have a chance because of male bias among hard-core PLP supporters. Ms Cox — who would be third woman out of Bermuda's past five Premiers — said: "I think in the party there's still some resistance. I think some people feel, 'Paula is nice, but I think a man should be in charge'. You are not going to get rid of people's biases. The number in that category are becoming a minority."

At some point she would seek a mandate from the people, she said, but an election before Christmas is unlikely while she seeks to establish herself in the top position.

Almost inevitably, the first question at yesterday's press conference surrounded her infamous "cog in the wheel" remark, in which she suggested she was unable to refuse Ministers' requests for more money.

"I have reinforced that I'm a member of a team," she replied.

Alluding to her campaign slogan, she continued: "Moving Forward Together is exactly like teamwork. Certainly as party leader, if elected, I then become first among equals. It's on my shoulders that all responsibility will rely and rest, but I will be buffered and supported by members of the team."

That "cog in the wheel" comment, in tandem with an unpopular tax-hiking Budget, saw the previously ever-popular Ms Cox endure her first serious dip at the polls. After consistently scoring a favourability of around 70 percent throughout her tenure as Deputy Premier — often three times as high as Dr. Brown's rating — Ms Cox's score slipped to just 47 percent in April, before climbing back a touch to 56 percent last month.

Polls also repeatedly show Ms Cox's support is strong within the PLP, something which might cause envious glances from her two competitors whose promises of unity have won favour with many outside the party.

With his financial background, Mr. Lister has backing within international business while Mr. Butler continues to be the politician Opposition supporters would most like to see running the Country.

But in October it will be the PLP that decides who will be the new Premier and, if her supporters at yesterday's press conference are to be believed, Ms Cox has every reason to be confident.