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 Belizeportal |
Elections in Belize are the duly held elections held at various levels of government in the nation of Belize.
Dissolving the National Assembly of Belize is the prerogative of the Governor General of Belize, currently Dame Froyla Tzalam. Under sections 84 and 85 of the Constitution, the Governor General can at any time dissolve or prorogue the Assembly under the advice of the Prime Minister of Belize, with the caveat that a general election must be called within three months of such dissolution, unless the Governor General sees no reason to do so.
City and town councils dissolve on the last Sunday of February in every third year, with the election called for the first Wednesday in March in every third year.
Amandala columnist Henry Gordon, refuting a statement by former Prime Minister Said Musa, laid out the boundaries under which national elections can be called in a recent article. Musa had said that elections would be held by March 2008 and that he would not take an election into "the extra three months", as he claimed Gordon had supposed. Gordon responded that there is no such provision in the Constitution and that Musa was being obscure on the matter.
Mr. Musa had requested a dissolution of the National Assembly on January 24, 2003, 4 years, 7 months and 4 days after the last general election, August 27, 1998. That dissolution was granted by Young on February 4, 2003, at which time the Assembly stood dissolved while preparations were made for elections on March 5, 2003. The PUP won the elections, with Musa continuing as Prime Minister. But his term did not begin, says Gordon, until the first meeting of the new National Assembly, on April 4, 2003. Since a National Assembly must continue for five years from this first sitting under Section 84, subsec. 2, the current assembly shall stand dissolved- unless sooner dissolved- on April 3, 2008. It follows that the latest a general election can be called after that date is July 3, 2008. Mr. Musa ended speculation over the date of general elections by calling them for February 7, 2008.
On the national level Belize elects a bicameral legislature called the National Assembly. The more powerful lower chamber, the House of Representatives, currently has 31 members elected for terms up to five years in single-seat constituencies on a first past the post basis. Members of the Belize House are called "area representatives" and are accorded the title of "The Honourable."
Belize has a two-party system, which has been in place since the pre-independence 1974 election, consists of the centre-left People's United Party (PUP) and the centre-right United Democratic Party (UDP). It has been extremely difficult for anybody to achieve electoral success as an independent or under the banner of any other party. Philip Goldson, a longtime UDP area representative who ran under the National Alliance for Belizean Rights banner in 1993, is the only successful candidate outside the two major parties since independence.
Only once in recent general elections has an independent candidate received more votes than a major party candidate. Wilfred Elrington, running independently in 2003, finished second in front of the UDP candidate in the Pickstock constituency. Like Goldson, Elrington also had a longstanding prior relationship with the UDP. He later rejoined the UDP and won election to the Belize House from Pickstock in 2009.
Despite the overall abysmal record of independent candidates and third parties, the political process in Belize still sees its fair share of well-intentioned people stepping forward to serve the nation.
All major Belizean political parties nominate House candidates via a preselection process similar to those used in other Westminster systems. These nominees are called "standard-bearers." In most cases, incumbent House members retain standard-bearer status for their party, while the opposition party in a given constituency often nominates its standard-bearer months or even years in advance of a general election. Standard bearers are considered party officials responsible for overall political organization in their particular constituencies regardless of whether they currently serve in the Belize House or not.
Members of the 13-seat upper house of the National Assembly, the Senate, are officially appointed by the Governor-General of Belize. In current practice, the majority party in the House appoints six senators and the minority party appoints three. The remaining four senators are appointed by nonpartisan groups.
The most recent general election was held on 11 November 2020.
Since 2008 the six Districts of Belize have been subdivided into 31 constituencies. Constituency breakdown by district is as follows:
Unlike general elections which are held every five years or at the pleasure of the governor-general, by statute cities and towns hold municipal elections on the first Wednesday in March every third year. Belize has seven towns and two recognized cities, Belize City (since 1945) and Belmopan (since 2000). The seven settlements with town status are Benque Viejo del Carmen, Corozal Town, Dangriga, Orange Walk Town, Punta Gorda, San Ignacio/Santa Elena and San Pedro Town. Smaller settlements hold elections independent of this schedule.
Belize City, due to its size, carries greater representation and importance, with one mayor and ten councilors elected (previously nine individuals out of which the mayor was selected), as opposed to one mayor and six councilors for Belmopan and the towns. The two-party system is in effect here as well, but independents and third party candidates have of late been doing relatively well in local elections. The last municipal election was held on 4 March 2015. The next municipal election is tentatively scheduled for 6 March 2024.
These types of elections are held on a less regular basis. By-elections are usually held to replace representatives either locally or nationally, who are lost during the course of their term for various reasons.
Referendums are normally held on issues of local or national importance. Belize had never held a national referendum before 2008, though one has consistently been demanded in order to settle the Guatemalan claim to Belize. Provisions have been made for a treaty to settle this claim to go to a referendum. In 1999, residents of Belmopan held a referendum to determine whether they would be responsible for their own affairs as a city; a majority voted yes, and Belmopan held its first City Council election less than a year later.
Prime Minister Said Musa announced on 7 January 2008 a nonbinding national referendum would be held on the same date as general elections, asking the people of Belize to decide whether they wanted the country's upper house, the Senate, to be elected. The referendum passed with 61 percent of voters supporting an elected Senate. [1]
Only five by-elections have been called for Belize House seats since the country became independent in September 1981. [2] In all but one, the incumbent party failed to retain the seat. Several other by-elections have been held at the municipal level:
| Constituency | Date | Incumbent | Party | Winner | Party | Cause | Retained | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corozal Bay | 3 March 2021 [3] | David Vega | PUP | Elvia Vega-Samos | PUP | Death (COVID-19) | Yes | ||
| Dangriga | 8 July 2015 [4] | Ivan Ramos | PUP | Frank Mena | UDP | Resignation | No | ||
| Cayo North | 5 January 2015 [5] | Joseph Mahmud | PUP | Omar Figueroa | UDP | Resignation | No | ||
| Cayo South | 29 October 2003 [6] | Agripino Cawich | PUP | John Saldivar | UDP | Death (cancer) | No | ||
| Freetown | January 1993 | Derek Aikman | NABR | Jorge Espat | PUP | Expelled from House due to bankruptcy | No | ||
In Belize, elections are supervised by the Elections and Boundaries Commission under the control of a Chief Elections Officer, responsible for conducting fair elections. Stuart Leslie was appointed to the post in August 2005, replacing veteran Myrtle Palacio. The EBC also has a board of directors which includes party representatives. The EBC was established in 1978 to relieve the public service of the duties of holding elections by themselves; an Elections and Boundaries Department was added in 1988. The EBD maintains a list of voters at offices countrywide and new voters regularly come in to sign on to the voter registration list for elections. The list was last revamped in 1997. The vote is restricted to Belizeans 18 years and older; the 18-year-old vote has been in place since 1978.
Stuart Leslie confirmed to local television station 7 News that he would not serve as Chief Elections Officer beyond December 2006, having accepted a post in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 7 News also reported that the usual reregistration exercise conducted every decade is about due (the last one having taken place nine years ago), but that the political parties are willing to delay it until after 2008 elections take place. 7 News article
In December 2006 career public officer Dorothy Bradley succeeded Leslie as Chief Elections Officer and immediately committed herself to streamlining the electoral process and restoring voter confidence. News 5 report Bradley has reportedly resigned as of September 2007, leaving the position vacant.
Said Wilbert Musa is a Belizean lawyer and politician. He was the third prime minister of Belize from 28 August 1998 to 8 February 2008.
The House of Representatives of Belize is the lower chamber of the National Assembly, the other being the Senate. It was created under the 1981 constitution. Members are commonly called "Area Representatives".
General elections were held in Belize on 5 March 2003. Belizeans elected 29 members to the House of Representatives for a term of five years. The result was a victory for the ruling People's United Party (PUP), which won 22 of the 29 seats.
General elections were held in Belize on 27 August 1998. The result was a victory for the People's United Party, which won 26 of the 29 seats and Said Musa was elected as prime minister for the first time. Voter turnout was 90%, the highest since independence.
General elections were held in Belize on 30 June 1993. Although the People's United Party received the most votes, the United Democratic Party–National Alliance for Belizean Rights alliance won the most seats. Voter turnout was 72.1%.
A series of local elections were held on March 1, 2006, to fill vacancies for town councils in Corozal, Orange Walk, San Pedro, San Ignacio, Benque Viejo, Dangriga, Punta Gorda, Belize City and Belmopan. All the councils except Belize City elected one mayor and six councilors; Belize City elected one mayor and ten councilors.
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.
General elections were held in Belize on 7 February 2008. Beginning with this election, Belizeans elected 31 members to the House of Representatives of Belize instead of 29. In what was considered an upset, the opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) won the election with 25 out of 31 seats; the ruling People's United Party won six.
Belize's 6 districts are politically divided into 31 constituencies. Each constituency sends one representative to Belize's House of Representatives for 5-year terms. This election is known as the General Election. Each person votes for the candidate they would want to represent their constituency in Central Government.
A constitutional referendum, the nation's first, was held in Belize on 7 February 2008, coinciding with the 2008 general elections.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and introduction to Belize:
John Birchman Saldivar is a Belizean politician. A member of the United Democratic Party, Saldivar has represented the Belmopan constituency in the Belize House of Representatives from its creation in 2008 until his defeat in the 2020 general election. He was previously Area Representative for Cayo South.
General elections were held in Belize on 7 March 2012 to elect all 31 members of the Belize House of Representatives as well as offices in the various local governments. The election was run by the Elections and Boundaries Commission's Elections and Boundaries Department. Dean Barrow and his United Democratic Party (UDP) were re-elected, but lost eight seats to the opposition People's United Party (PUP) to maintain a slim 17-14 majority in the Belize House. The upper house of the Belize National Assembly, the Senate, was appointed after the election by the UDP-led government in accordance with the Constitution of Belize.
General elections were held in Belize on 4 November 2015 to elect members of the House of Representatives. On 28 September 2015 Prime Minister Dean Barrow announced that he had advised the Governor-General to dissolve the National Assembly and to fix Wednesday 4 November 2015 as the date for the next general elections.
Belmopan is an electoral constituency in the Cayo District represented in the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belize since 2020 by Oscar Mira of the People's United Party (PUP).
Cayo North East is an electoral constituency in the Cayo District represented in the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belize since 2015 by Orlando Habet of the People's United Party.
Municipal elections were held in Belize on 7 March 2012 at the same time as the Belizean general election. The United Democratic Party (UDP) won six municipalities, while the People's United Party (PUP) won three municipalities.
General elections were held in Belize on 11 November 2020 to elect the 31 members of the House of Representatives. Nomination day was 21 October.
Municipal elections were held in Belize on 7 March 2018. Voters elected a total 67 representatives. This includes a mayor in each of the nine communities, 42 town councils and 16 city councillors. The elections saw the People's United Party approach local parity with the ruling United Democratic Party. In 2015, the UDP won 62 out of the 67 seats nationwide, with the opposition People's United Party won the remaining seats. In 2018, the UDP won 41 seats, with the PUP picking up the remaining 26. The PUP gained complete council control of Belize City and Corozal Town, picked up a council seat in Dangriga, and regained complete control of the Orange Walk Town council. The Belize Progressive Party had 13 councillor candidates in three elections, and mayoral candidates in those three elections as well as in San Ignacio/Santa Elena. There were also seven independent candidates for mayor.
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| Referendums | |
