Posted: Wednesday, July 17, 2024. 8:44 pm CST.
By Aaron Humes: Polls are closed tonight across Toledo East, meaning Belize’s sixth by-election since Independence in 1981 will be going to count.
Unofficial voter turnout is estimated at 60 percent with 4,702 votes cast of 7,725 eligible voters.
As many vacancies leading to by-elections have been caused by the deaths of parliamentarians, three, as by the resignation of the area representative. Michael Espat joins the former list with Agripino Cawich and David “Dido” Vega, all People’s United Party (PUP) members; on the latter list are Derek Aikman of the National Alliance of Belizean Rights (NABR); Joseph Mahmud and Ivan Ramos both of the PUP. Curiously, all but one area representative whose seat has gone to a by-election was elected as a PUP; Aikman, of course, was elected as a member of the United Democratic Party (UDP) but left the party with Philip Goldson and others in 1991 to form the NABR. The two parties would fight the 1993 general election together.
With the Toledo East by-election, each of Belize’s six districts save Orange Walk has now had one; Cayo has had two – Cayo South in 2003 and Cayo North in 2015. Coincidentally, those are the original divisions of the district formed in 1961.
The PUP won the 1993 by-election in Freetown with Jorge Espat, preceding Belize City Council elections and ultimately general elections called ahead of schedule that year; the blue won the former but narrowly lost the latter.
By the time of the Cayo South by-election in 2003, the PUP were in ascendancy but John Saldivar ambushed them with a narrow victory over Joaquin Cawich.
Fortunes had again reversed by 2015, when both Mahmud and Ramos’ departures preceded drubbings inflicted by Omar Figueroa and Frank “Pawpa” Mena respectively.
Since John Briceno replaced Francis Fonseca, the PUP has regained its dominant position in politics with the Corozal Bay by-election in 2021, held concurrently with that year’s municipal elections, confirming their position. A victory tonight likely sets the blue up well going into a general election year, if not tempts the ruling party by moving up the date; but if the UDP ambushes them again, or even if Wil Maheia masterminds an outstanding upset, the PUP’s will likely stand pat.
We’ll have the result as it happens.
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The post A history of by-elections in Belize as Toledo East goes to final count appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
Posted: Wednesday, July 17, 2024. 8:44 pm CST. By Aaron Humes: Polls are closed tonight across Toledo East, meaning Belize’s sixth by-election since Independence in 1981
The post A history of by-elections in Belize as Toledo East goes to final count appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
