Belizean municipal elections, 2015

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Municipal elections were held in Belize on 4 March 2015. Voters elected 67 representatives, 18 on city councils and 49 on town councils. The elections were a decisive victory for the ruling United Democratic Party, which won 62 out of the 67 seats nationwide. The opposition People's United Party won the remaining seats, losing control of town councils in Dangriga and Punta Gorda, maintaining a majority only in Orange Walk Town. [1]

Belize country in Central America

Belize is a country located on the eastern coast of Central America. Belize is bordered on the northwest by Mexico, on the east by the Caribbean Sea, and on the south and west by Guatemala. It has an area of 22,970 square kilometres (8,867 sq mi) and a population of 387,879 (2017). Its mainland is about 180 mi (290 km) long and 68 mi (110 km) wide. It has the lowest population and population density in Central America. The country's population growth rate of 1.87% per year (2015) is the second highest in the region and one of the highest in the Western Hemisphere.

United Democratic Party (Belize) political party in Belize

The United Democratic Party (UDP) is one of the two major political parties in Belize. It is the ruling party, having won the 2008, 2012 and 2015 general elections. A centre-right conservative party, the UDP is led by Prime Minister of Belize Dean Barrow.

Peoples United Party Belizean political party

The People's United Party (PUP) is one of two major political parties in Belize. It is currently the main opposition party with 12 of 31 seats in the House of Representatives. It is a centre-left Christian democratic party. The party leader is Johnny Briceño, who currently serves as Belize's Leader of the Opposition.

Contents

Participating parties

Vision Inspired by the People

Vision Inspired by the People (VIP) is a political party established in December 2005 in the Cayo District of Belize. It first contested municipal elections in the capital city of Belmopan on 1 March 2006, receiving 20 percent of votes cast but none of the seven seats. VIP operates primarily in Belmopan, but also has a presence in the Belize and Corozal Districts.

Peoples National Party (Belize)

The People's National Party of Belize was a political movement headquartered in Punta Gorda, Toledo District, Belize. Operating primarily in southern Belize, the party fielded candidates in the 2008 and 2012 general elections. It held its first meeting on Monday, 19 February 2007 in San Antonio Village, Toledo District.

Results

Belize City

Belize City Mayor Darrell Bradley was re-elected to a second term on the UDP ticket with 63 percent of the vote, defeating PUP nominee Yolanda Schakron and independent candidate Eustaquio "Ernesto" Torres. [3] The UDP also swept all 10 seats on the Belize City Council. [2] [4]

Belize City City in Belize, Belize

Belize City is the largest city in Belize and was once the capital of the former British Honduras. According to the 2010 census, Belize City has a population of 57,169 people in 16,162 households. It is at the mouth of the Haulover Creek, which is a tributary of the Belize River. The Belize River empties into the Caribbean Sea five miles from Belize City on the Philip Goldson Highway on the coast of the Caribbean. The city is the country's principal port and its financial and industrial hub. Cruise ships drop anchor outside the port and are tendered by local citizens. The city was almost entirely destroyed in 1961 when Hurricane Hattie swept ashore on October 31. It was the capital of British Honduras until the government was moved to the new capital of Belmopan in 1970.

Darrell Bradley is a Belizean attorney and politician. He has served as Mayor of Belize City from 2012 to 2018

Edmee Yolanda Schakron-Rodríguez is a Belizean activist and People's United Party candidate, best known as the aunt of murder victim Chris Galvez and a founder and president of Belizeans For Justice. Schakron was briefly the PUP standard bearer for the Lake Independence House constituency in 2012, but her candidacy was disallowed due to her dual citizenship at the time in Belize and the United States, after which she renounced U.S. citizenship. Schakron was the unsuccessful PUP nominee for Mayor of Belize City in 2015.

Belmopan

In Belmopan, UDP mayoral candidate Khalid Belisle defeated the PUP's Jose Amilcar Chacon and the VIP's Hubert Dennis Enriquez. The UDP also won all six city council seats. [2]

Belmopan City in Cayo, Belize

Belmopan is the capital city of Belize. Its population in 2010 was 16,451. Although the smallest capital city in the continental Americas by population, Belmopan is the third-largest settlement in Belize, behind Belize City and San Ignacio. Founded as a planned community in 1970, Belmopan is one of the newest national capital cities in the world. Since 2000 Belmopan has been one of two settlements in Belize to hold official city status, along with Belize City.

Khalid Belisle is a Belizean politician. He has served as mayor of Belmopan since 2015. Belisle is a member of the United Democratic Party.

Towns

Benque Viejo del Carmen Town in Cayo District, Belize

Benque Viejo del Carmen ("Benque") is the westernmost town in Belize, 130 km (81 mi) by road west and south of Belize City, at the Guatemalan border. San Ignacio lies 13 km to the east and Melchor de Mencos just across the border. The Mopan River runs along the town's north and west edges.

Corozal Town Town in Corozal, Belize

Corozal Town is a town in Belize, capital of Corozal District. Corozal Town is located about 84 miles north of Belize City, and 9 miles from the border with Mexico. The population of Corozal Town, according to the main results of the 2010 census, is 9,871. Corozal was a private estate before becoming a town in the 1840s, mostly settled by Maya Mestizo refugees from the Caste War of Yucatán. Much of the town was built over an ancient Maya city, sometimes known as Santa Rita; this may have been the original Pre-Columbian town called Chetumal. Corozal Town was badly damaged by Hurricane Janet in 1955, and was substantially rebuilt afterwards.

Dangriga Town in Stann Creek, Belize

Dangriga, formerly known as Stann Creek Town, is a town in southern Belize, located on the Caribbean coast at the mouth of the North Stann Creek River. It is the capital of Belize's Stann Creek District. Dangriga is served by the Dangriga Airport. Commonly known as the "culture capital of Belize" due to its influence on punta music and other forms of Garifuna culture, Dangriga is the largest settlement in southern Belize.

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