 He became only the second person in BVI political history (after Lavity Stoutt) to serve two non-consecutive terms of office as Chief Minister/Premier, and only the third (Lavity Stoutt and Willard Wheatley) to win more than one general election as party leader (both since matched by Orlando Smith).Both were considered remarkable achievements for a politician who was written off by some as a "spent force" after he lost the previous election at the age of 69.Despite questions over how long Ralph O'Neal expects to serve as Premier, starting his term at the age of 73, he served the full term.