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.
Background The PUP were seeking a second consecutive term in office after recording significant development in the economy from 1998 to 2003. Their opponents, the UDP, sought to replace them in office because of charges of corruption and mismanagement of public funds. Previous to this election, the parties had alternated their time in office since independence.
As an aside, municipal elections had originally been called for this date, creating a situation of triple elections in one day, a first for the Caribbean region according to Myrtle Palacio of the EBD.
As a postscript, Cayo South winner Agripino Cawich Sr. died of illness in August 2003. UDP candidate John Saldivar, who had lost to Cawich in March, won the subsequent by-election over son Joaquin Cawich in October.
This general election was also the first in Belizean history in which former Prime Minister George Cadle Price was not a candidate. Price, who stood down from the Pickstock constituency, had contested every prior general election since 1954, winning each time except 1984.Elections Results , Belize Elections and Boundaries Commission. (accessed 19 November 2014)
After what Prime Minister Said Musa called a "drawn-out" campaign that he said affected the country's ability to function, Musa called a house meeting on January 24, 2003 It's official and formally announced that he had asked Governor General Sir Colville Young to dissolve the National Assembly of Belize by February 4, decree nomination of candidates for elections on February 17, and call elections on March 5.
Elections were called early; they had not been constitutionally due until at least November 2003. The Opposition UDP, led by attorney Dean Barrow and eager to recover from the disastrous 1998 campaign, declared themselves ready to battle. Governor General Young officially issued the proclamation dissolving the House on February 4, Governor General dissolves House as requested by Mr. Musa.
Campaign The People's United Party had nominated candidates through much of 2001 and 2002. Among the more hotly contested races was Pickstock, where Attorney General and Senator Godfrey Smith defeated Bobby Usher of the PUP old guard. A number of other sitting members declared that they would not run again, including Jorge Espat in Freetown (relieved by Francis Fonseca) and Henry Canton in Stann Creek West (replaced by Rodwell Ferguson). The PUP prepared a visually oriented campaign, stressing their accomplishments in office as the governing party and citing weak links in the UDP armor.
The United Democratic Party's selection process was rife with controversy. In May 2002, Pickstock standard bearer and musician Kenny Morgan was removed UDP replace Morgan in Pickstock (he would eventually be replaced by Diane Haylock). Attorney Wilfred Elrington contested Pickstock independently after running into party officials over Haylock's appointment; brother Hubert, who had already left the party, likewise contested independently in Lake Independence against the sitting Cordel Hyde. Another bone of contention was Albert, where the UDP selected Marilyn Williams over Sydney Fuller. Fuller ran independently but Williams was herself the subject of investigation over allegations that she was a U.S. citizen and therefore ineligible to participate in the elections. Representatives in Lake Independence and Belize Rural Central were also replaced.Channel5Belize.COM
This was the first election for the We the People Reform Movement, which put up candidates in Corozal, Orange Walk and Belize District. Independents appeared in all six districts. The election was tagged as featuring the highest number of independent candidates ever, including former UDP candidate Wilfred Elrington in Pickstock. Elrington finished second to winner Godfrey Smith but doubled up UDP choice Diane Haylock.
The 2003 general election can be considered one of the most glitzy and packaged. The PUP ran a mostly upbeat campaign, focusing on celebrating the works achieved in its five years in office. The campaign was highlighted by the release of a CD of political campaign songs written by prominent Belizeans, particularly "Welcome to the Party" by Supa G. "Party" saw three translations and numerous airings over the course of two months of campaigning, invariably accompanied by PUP officials smiling and making contact with their constituents. PUP confident of victory
The UDP chose substance over style in a realist campaign. Their commercials and statements attacked what they saw as latent corruption in the PUP's governing of the country. In February a broadside of scandals rocked the retiring administration, in sectors as varied as transport and education, and the UDP pushed every single one as an indication of the things the UDP would not tolerate if elected. UDP focused and ready
We The People and other independent candidates stressed their belief that the system needed to change and that overall life needed to be improved for all Belizeans. The independents were not as heavily represented on the media but saw their opportunities as they came. Independents have their say
Conduct The elections were supervised by the Elections and Boundaries Department, headed by Chief Elections Officer Myrtle Palacio and her four person administrative staff. In preparation for the possibility of general elections and the certainty of municipal elections, the EBD had cleaned out their electoral rolls following the 1998 re-registration exercise, sought to boost voter confidence through the media, and trained fellow civil servants across the country to prepare for the rigorous test of conducting three separate elections in one day.
The EBD commanded 1,432 election workers, 567 municipal, 865 general. The workers were divided according to post: returning officer (in charge of the station and vote), election clerks and assistants, presiding officers (at each polling area), poll clerks and assistants, and counting clerks. Statutory Instruments Nos. 14 and 43 of 2003 respectively guaranteed voters the right to register up to February 10, 2003 in lieu of nomination day and allowed for more counting agents assigned to the general elections.
On election day itself, despite the usual early headaches, voting went smoothly. Palacio noted in her end of year report that no petitions for recounts were presented for any election. Nevertheless, The Guardian newspaper of March 16 saw an article written by then member of the Elections and Boundaries Commission and editor Herbert Panton, which criticized the electoral process. For more, see the Guardian article.
A number of media houses joined forces to cover wire-to-wire the events of March 5. Great Belize Television (Channel 5) announced a partnership with RSV Media Center, headlined by LOVE FM, on January 13, 2003. Channel 5, January 13: Five, Love join for full coverage Their coverage used the tagline "Decision 2003."
Later on, Tropical Vision Limited Channel 7 teamed up with fledgling Krem Television and Radio. Their coverage was nicknamed "The Moment" and used "Lose Yourself" by Eminem as its theme song.
Election day began at 5:00 am for workers and 7:00 AM for voters. Voters participated from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM; counting began at 8:00 PM. Palacio reported that Pickstock's result, a victory for Godfrey Smith, was the first official result to come in, at 10:00 PM. By 12:45 AM Thursday morning, the PUP had amassed the majority fifteen seats, Power to the PUP and by 1:10 AM could start celebrating as the CEO stamped the particulars. While the UDP had regained 6% of votes over the 1998 results, the PUP still beat them 53-45.
Results
By constituency DivisionElectorateTurnout%CandidatePartyVotes%Albert2,2861,78978.1 Mark Espat 1,48282.8 Marilyn Williams 25314.1 Sydney Fuller 543.0Rejected votes130.7Belize Rural Central4,5433,17369.8 Ralph Fonseca 2,11066.5 Colin Gillett 1,06333.5Rejected votes00.0Belize Rural North3,3412,70781.0 Maxwell Samuels 1,44753.5 Felix Sutherland 1,25146.2Rejected votes90.3Belize Rural South3,7122,99380.6 Manuel Heredia 1,53951.4 Anna Patricia Arceo 1,43047.8Rejected votes240.8Caribbean Shores4,0233,02175.09 Jose Coye 1,59252.7 Oscar Ayuso 1,42947.3Rejected votes240.8Cayo Central6,0224,84680.5 Mario Castellanos 2,43850.3 Rene Montero 2,26046.6 Eduardo Juan 631.3 Ivan Roberts 260.5Rejected votes581.2Cayo North6,8425,67282.9 Ainslie Leslie 2,91751.4 Dean Williams 2,70747.7Rejected votes490.9Cayo South8,3446,28775.4 Agripino Cawich 3,11149.5 John Saldivar 3,08749.1Rejected votes801.3Cayo West4,6564,01886.3 Erwin Contreras 2,18054.3 Kendall Mendez 1,80044.8Rejected votes30.9Collet2,848189266.4 Patrick Faber 94850.1 Remijio Montejo 88947.0 Paul Jones 552.9Rejected votes00.0Corozal Bay5,2744,05876.9 Juan Vildo Marin 2,08951.5 Carlos Castillo 1,82745.0 Roy Rodriguez 862.1Rejected votes561.4Corozal North5,2763,49166.2 Valdemar Castillo 1,71349.1 Nemencio Acosta 1,70548.8 Felipe Tzul 561.6Rejected votes170.5Corozal South East4,7524,19488.3 Florencio Marin 2,15551.4 Servando Samos 1,93046.0 Hipolito Bautista 621.5Rejected votes471.1Corozal South West3,8933,47389.2 Gabriel Martinez 1,83552.8 Gregorio Garcia 1,59345.9 Lucilo Teck 200.6Rejected votes250.7Dangriga4,2542,91468.5 Sylvia Flores 1,52752.4 Russell Garcia 129944.6 Ian Caliz 441.5Rejected votes441.5Fort George2,0671,54674.8 Said Musa 1,17376.6 Carlos Walker 32020.9 Francis Gegg 382.5Rejected votes151.0Freetown2,5101,92576.7 Francis Fonseca 1,15460.0 Douglas Singh 77140.0Rejected votes00.0Lake Independence6,1764,44772.0 Cordel Hyde 2,76462.2 Anthony Leslie 1,49933.7 Patrick Rogers 962.5 Hubert Elrington 882.0Rejected votes611.4Mesopotamia2,1781,52269.9 Michael Finnegan 1,02455.8 Phillip Brackett 95344.2Rejected votes80.5Orange Walk Central3,3962,78281.9 Johnny Briceno 1,71361.6 Miguel Urbina 1,05037.7Rejected votes190.7Orange Walk East5,4864,59083.7 Dave Burgos 2,40052.3 Elodio Aragon 2,14446.7Rejected votes461.0Orange Walk North5,0264,32486.0 Servulo Baeza 2,25652.2 Phillip De La Fuente 2,04047.2Rejected votes280.6Orange Walk South5,2764,67588.6 Ismael Cal 2,65556.8 Julian Padron 1,97142.2 Erwin Sanchez 370.8Rejected votes120.2Pickstock1,9871,61181.09 Godfrey Smith 89955.8 Wilfred Elrington 43927.3 Diane Haylock 25215.6Rejected votes211.3Port Loyola5,7984,01469.2 Anthony Martinez 2,38659.4 Dolores Balderamos-García 1,56538.9Rejected votes180.4Queen's Square2,6902,15680.2 Dean Barrow 1,20355.8 Richard Bradley 95344.2Rejected votes170.8Stann Creek West5,7184,44577.7 Rodwell Ferguson 2,48655.9 Glenford Eiley 1,89542.6 Michael Flores 300.7Rejected votes340.7Toledo East4,2693,32577.9 Michael Espat 1,75752.8 Eden Martinez 1,56847.2Rejected votes391.1Toledo West4,9084,34988.6 Marcial Mes 2,36854.5 Dennis Usher 1,94044.6 Leonardo Acal 210.5Rejected votes200.4
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