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BELMOPAN, Belize, Nov 04 2015 – More than 190,000 voters are electing a new government here on Wednesday. The country’s two main political parties concluded the campaign for the elections expressing confidence.
The ruling United Democratic Party and the main opposition People’s United Party have each nominated candidates for all 31 constituencies, while the newly formed People’s Progressive Party is contesting 25 seats.
Prime Minister Dean Barrow, who called the election nearly two years ahead of schedule, said he was confident of victory and that he has not been impressed with the campaign of the PUP.
But the PUP, which won 14 seats in the 2012 poll, remains hopeful.
The PUP’s 2015-2019 manifesto promises the creation of 25,000 jobs, national health insurance, free primary and secondary education, abolition of income tax and a reduction in the general sales tax from 12.5 percent to 10 percent, among other initiatives.
The UDP, meanwhile, has promised the development of a Commercial Bight Port, construction of a new international airport on Ambergris Caye and the development of a special financing programme for small businesses and family farmers.
The U.S. Embassy in Belize and the Organization of American States will monitor the elections.
