Community leadership and a shared commitment to a stronger Virgin Islands
Gregory P. Smith is honored to receive the personal support of Red Bailey, president of the Virgin Islands Game Fishing Club, as his independent campaign for the Legislature of the Virgin Islands continues to grow across St. Thomas and St. John.
Red is well known within the local marine and fishing community, where strong relationships, responsible leadership, and respect for the waters surrounding the Virgin Islands are essential. His support reflects a growing belief that the territory needs leaders who are prepared to listen, work across political lines, and focus on practical solutions.
For Gregory, community support is about more than adding names to a list. It is about earning the trust of people who understand the everyday challenges and opportunities facing the Virgin Islands.
“I am grateful for Red’s personal support and for the confidence he has placed in this campaign,” Gregory said. “The Virgin Islands move forward when people from different backgrounds come together, share their experience, and remain focused on what is best for the community.”
Gregory’s campaign is built around the idea that the territory is Better Together. That means bringing residents, workers, business owners, community leaders, and public officials into the same conversation. It also means recognizing that no political party, industry, or individual has every answer.
With 30 years of experience in commercial aviation, aerial firefighting, emergency operations, leadership, and public-sector management, Gregory has spent much of his career making difficult decisions and building teams around shared goals. For more than a decade, he has also owned and operated businesses in the Virgin Islands that currently employ more than 50 local residents.
Those experiences have shaped his commitment to strengthening infrastructure, reducing unnecessary burdens on local businesses, creating opportunities for Virgin Islanders, improving government accountability, and protecting the industries that support the territory’s economy.
The marine industry is an important part of life throughout the Virgin Islands. It supports tourism, recreation, fishing, transportation, and local employment. Gregory believes the people who work in and depend on that industry must have a meaningful voice in decisions that affect its future.
Support from respected community members such as Red Bailey reinforces the campaign’s belief that lasting progress begins with listening. Gregory intends to remain accessible throughout the campaign, learn from people with direct experience, and bring those perspectives into the Legislature.
This campaign is not about choosing one side over another. It is about bringing people together around a shared purpose: creating a safer, stronger, more affordable, and more accountable Virgin Islands.
Gregory is grateful to Red Bailey for standing with the campaign and looks forward to continuing conversations with residents throughout St. Thomas and St. John.
Better Together means every voice matters—and every person has a role in building the future of the Virgin Islands.
Red Bailey’s support is personal and does not represent an organizational endorsement by the Virgin Islands Game Fishing Club unless separately stated by the organization.