Posted: Tuesday, February 11, 2025. 9:56 am CST.
By Horace Palacio: The United Democratic Party (UDP) has intensified its call for a fair and transparent redistricting process, demanding that electoral boundaries be properly realigned before the next general elections. In a strong statement issued on Monday, the opposition party accused the People’s United Party (PUP) government of deliberately undermining the redistricting effort for political gain.
The UDP, led by Dr. Shyne Barrow, has pledged to support legal actions to ensure the High Court intervenes and forces a fair redistricting process. They argue that the PUP’s handling of the redistricting exercise was flawed from the start, especially with the controversial appointment of Senator Collet Montejo, a PUP official, to the technical task force overseeing the project. According to the UDP, this move compromised the neutrality of the exercise and turned it into a political maneuver rather than a democratic necessity.
Among the major concerns raised by the UDP were missed deadlines, lack of transparency, and resignations from the technical team, which they claim reflect deep flaws in the process. The opposition has also condemned the PUP’s decision to implement a 25% voter variation threshold, instead of the internationally accepted 15% standard. This change, they claim, has created huge voter disparities—with some constituencies seeing as much as a 50% difference in voter counts, benefiting certain PUP ministers loyal to the party’s leadership.
One of the most controversial proposals, the UDP alleges, was attaching Caye Caulker to the mainland Fort George constituency, currently held by PUP minister Henry Charles Usher, who is also responsible for Elections & Boundaries. The opposition believes this move was a deliberate attempt to shift voting power in favor of the ruling party.
Even within the PUP, the redistricting plan sparked internal opposition, with several of the party’s own ministers raising concerns over the process. The backlash was so significant that the redistricting report was eventually shelved, and the exercise was abandoned before being finalized.
Now, with elections looming, the UDP has joined forces with the Belize Peace Movement, Jeremy Enriquez, Rudolph Norales, and Jessica Tulcey in demanding that the redistricting process be completed before the country heads to the polls. They are also calling on civil society, social activists, and Belize’s democratic allies to pressure the government into ensuring fair and equal representation for all voters.
As tensions rise and political battle lines are drawn, the UDP maintains that allowing the next general elections to proceed without proper redistricting would be an injustice to Belize’s democracy. With the PUP government facing mounting legal and public pressure, the fight for fair representation in Belize’s electoral system is far from over.
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The post UDP demands fair redistricting before next General Elections appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
The United Democratic Party (UDP) has intensified its call for a fair and transparent redistricting process, demanding that electoral boundaries be properly realigned before the next general elections. In a strong statement issued on Monday, the opposition party accused the People’s United Party (PUP) government of deliberately undermining the redistricting effort for political gain.
The post UDP demands fair redistricting before next General Elections appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
