The next general election in Belize is scheduled to take place no later than 2025. The current prime minister, Johnny Briceño, has confirmed that elections will not be held in 2024. The Belize Progressive Party has confirmed its intention to contest the elections, pushing for completed redistricting before the elections take place.
Characteristics | Values |
---|---|
Date of Next General Election | No later than 2025 |
Purpose | Elect the 31 members of the House of Representatives |
Current Prime Minister | Johnny Briceño |
Parties Contesting | Belize Justice Movement, Belize Progressive Party |
What You'll Learn
- The next Belizean general election will be held no later than 2025
- The current Prime Minister, Johnny Briceño, has confirmed that the election will not take place in 2024
- The Belize Progressive Party has confirmed its intention to contest the election
- The Belize Justice Movement, a party that runs on a campaign of social justice, will also be contesting the election
- The election will be held to elect the 31 members of the House of Representatives
The next Belizean general election will be held no later than 2025
Belize's next general election will be held no later than 2025, according to the country's Constitution. The exact date is yet to be confirmed, but the current prime minister, Johnny Briceño, has confirmed that the election will not take place in 2024.
The election will be held to choose the 31 members of the House of Representatives, who can serve for up to five years.
Belize has a two-party system, with the centre-left People's United Party (PUP) and the centre-right United Democratic Party (UDP) dominating politics since the 1974 election.
The most recent general election was held on November 11, 2020, with the PUP winning 26 seats and the UDP taking the remaining five. The PUP's victory marked its first national election win since 2003.
The PUP's Johnny Briceño became the country's new prime minister, replacing Dean Barrow, who was constitutionally required to step down after serving three terms.
General elections in Belize are usually held every five years, but they can be called earlier by the Governor-General, who can dissolve the National Assembly at any time, provided a new election is held within three months.
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The current Prime Minister, Johnny Briceño, has confirmed that the election will not take place in 2024
Belize's current Prime Minister, Johnny Briceño, has confirmed that the next general election will not take place in 2024. The election is scheduled to be held no later than 2025 and will elect the 31 members of the House of Representatives.
In Belize, the Governor General can dissolve the National Assembly at any time, under the advice of the Prime Minister, and a general election must be called within three months, unless the Governor General sees no reason to do so. The last general election was held on November 11, 2020, with the People's United Party (PUP) winning 26 seats and the United Democratic Party (UDP) winning the remaining 5 seats.
The Belize Justice Movement and the Belize Progressive Party have confirmed that they will be contesting the upcoming election. The Belize Progressive Party is pushing for completed redistricting before the elections take place.
Belize has a two-party system, with the centre-left PUP and the centre-right UDP being the dominant parties since the 1974 pre-independence election. It has been challenging for independent candidates or members of other parties to achieve electoral success.
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The Belize Progressive Party has confirmed its intention to contest the election
The Belize Progressive Party (BPP) has confirmed its intention to contest the next general election in Belize, which is scheduled to be held no later than 2025. The BPP, founded in 2015, is a political party in Belize that was formed by the merger of several extra-parliamentary opposition groups. The party made its electoral debut in the November 2015 general election, fielding 25 candidates and capturing 1.63% of the nationwide vote (2,336 votes).
The BPP supports a republican form of government for Belize and has positioned itself on the centre-left to left-wing of the political spectrum. Its ideology includes social democracy, reformism, and republicanism. The party's slogan for the 2015 election was "Changing the system in Belize" and "For Progress! BPP for Belize!".
In the lead-up to the 2020 Belizean general election, the BPP, led by Patrick Rogers, participated in a Prime Ministerial debate alongside the Belize People's Front leader Nancy Marin. This debate was a significant event, as it was the first time since 1998 that such a debate had been held. Despite their efforts, the BPP failed to win any seats in the 2020 election.
For the upcoming election, the BPP is pushing for completed redistricting before the election takes place. This is a similar stance to that of the Belize Peace Movement (BPM), a civil society organisation that filed a petition for redistricting before the 2020 elections, arguing that the district map did not reflect the population distribution, resulting in unequal representation.
The BPP will be joining other political parties in the election contest, including the People's United Party (PUP) and the United Democratic Party (UDP), the two major parties in Belize's two-party system. The PUP, led by Johnny Briceño, will be seeking to build on its success in the 2020 election, where it achieved its first national election victory since 2003. Meanwhile, the UDP will be aiming to rebound from its poor performance in the previous election, where it recorded its worst result since 1998.
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The Belize Justice Movement, a party that runs on a campaign of social justice, will also be contesting the election
The next election in Belize is scheduled for 6 March 2024. This will be a municipal election.
The Belize Justice Movement (BJM), a new political party, will be contesting the 2025 general election. The BJM identifies as a grassroots organisation and was officially launched in Belize City in October 2022. The party's president and founder, Friday Pfrizer, spoke about the need for social justice in Belize and the potential for "real change" that benefits the majority, particularly the middle and lower classes.
In his speech, Pfrizer outlined several ideas and goals for the BJM, including plans to invest in the people of Belize by issuing 25,000 free Belize passports and improving the transportation system with new buses and state-of-the-art bus terminals in Orange Walk and Corozal. He also emphasised the importance of accountability, stating that the BJM wants the people to hold them accountable for their promises.
The BJM is starting small, with five members at the time of its launch, but hopes to gain momentum and grow in numbers in the coming months. While Belize has a two-party system that has been in place since the 1974 pre-independence election, the emergence of new parties and independent candidates continues to shape the country's political landscape.
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The election will be held to elect the 31 members of the House of Representatives
Belize's next general election will be held no later than 2025 to elect the 31 members of the House of Representatives. The current prime minister, Johnny Briceño, has confirmed that the elections will not take place in 2024.
The House of Representatives is the lower chamber of Belize's bicameral legislature, the National Assembly. The House of Representatives is more powerful than the upper house, the Senate, and its members are elected for terms of up to five years in single-seat constituencies on a first-past-the-post basis.
The Belize Justice Movement and the Belize Progressive Party have confirmed their intention to contest the elections. The Belize Progressive Party is pushing for redistricting to be completed before the elections.
Belize has a two-party system, with the centre-left People's United Party (PUP) and the centre-right United Democratic Party (UDP) being the dominant parties since the 1974 pre-independence election. It is extremely difficult for anyone to achieve electoral success as an independent or under the banner of any other party.
The last general election was held on November 11, 2020, with the PUP winning 26 seats and the UDP winning 5. The election saw the highest voter turnout since 1998, at over 81%.
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Frequently asked questions
The next general election in Belize is scheduled to be held no later than 2025.
General elections are held every five years or at the pleasure of the governor-general.
The current Prime Minister of Belize is Johnny Briceño.