AmbergrisCaye.com Home Forums The Cayes Ambergris Caye Elections Election Day!!!

Belize votes in election key to financial future

SAN PEDRO, Belize, March 7 (Reuters) - Belize's centrist government seeks a second term on Wednesday in elections which could seriously affect scope for borrowing in the tiny Central American nation, best known for its pristine beaches and the world's second-longest coral reef.

Prime Minister Dean Barrow has turned repayments on a $550 million bond into a campaign issue and said if re-elected, his first act will be to renegotiate the terms of a bond which accounts for half the country's debt and 40 percent of its economic output.

Belize, about the same size as Massachusetts and the 13th most indebted country in the world, is locked into a bruising schedule of rising interest rates which will cost the government $46 million over the next 12 months - 12 percent of revenues.

Ratings agencies have already pushed the country's credit rating well into 'junk' territory and a painful debt restructuring could risk fresh downgrades and hurt Belize's ability to raise funds in capital markets in the future.

Barrow has not given details of his restructuring plans, and Opposition Leader Francis Fonseca said he would meet obligations by growing the $1.25 billion, tourism-dependent economy.

Jobs and the economy are the top concerns for Belize's 313,000-strong population - a mix of Creoles, Spanish-speaking Mestizos, Maya Indians, African-descended Garifuna and German-speaking Mennonites - along with security and oil exploration.

The United Democratic Party (UDP) goes into the election with a strong lead, controlling 25 of 31 seats in parliament, with the remaining six held by the opposition People's United Power (PUP), voted out in 2008 after 10 years in power.

Informal opinion polls showed many voters undecided in the run-up to the vote, and many said they were disillusioned with both major parties, which have alternated in power since Belize's independence from Britain in 1981.

For the first time, minor parties have joined forces to run under the banner of the Belize Unity Alliance and are fielding nine candidates.

In San Pedro, the biggest town on Ambergris Caye off the country's northern coast, flags sported the UDP's red, white and blue colors. But there were also flyers for an independent candidate, while a convoy of golf carts cruised the island's few paved roads exhorting voters to vote for the Alliance.

"I think the UDP will win but they won't win like four years ago, maybe they will have a majority but not the same (size)," said bartender Raul Delgado, 49.

Offshore drilling is also a hot topic locally because the Belize Barrier Reef passes just east of the island. A recent poll organized by activists showed widespread opposition to further exploration. Belize has exported oil since 2006, although output is low at around 4,000 barrels per day.

"If petroleum spreads through the sea, local people will suffer; the island lives from tourists," said Daisy Santos, 21, who manages a souvenir shop on San Pedro's main tourist strip.

Barrow has promised to hold a formal referendum on offshore drilling and PUP leader Fonseca, who has been in the job for just over four months, has pledged a moratorium.

Belizeans Head To The Polls

Tonight election fever is at a furious pitch all across the country - as the polls for a double municipal and general election open in a matter of hours.

In the general election, 178,054 (one-hundred and seventy-eight thousand and fifty-four) voters are eligible to vote for 74 PUP, UDP, VIP, Belize Unity Alliance and Independent Candidates in 31 constituencies at 320 polling stations.

In the municipal elections, 97,979 of those voters are eligible to vote for 170 candidates at 168 of those polling stations.

The center of all the action today was the Headquarters of the elections and boundaries department where about two hundred thousand ballots were distributed to 40 returning officers - under armed guard. Those ballots will be stored overnight at secure locations for the opening of polls at 7:00 am. This evening, the Chief Elections Officer - who is at the center of a well-tuned machine right now, told us how it's going and what her only concern is:

Josephine Tamai - Chief Elections Officer
"Well, at Elections and Boundaries right now, we're in full gear for elections tomorrow. We've already distributed all our supplies country-wide. All the ballot papers have been secured - they're issued already, because we need to have them in place by tomorrow. We know that the polls open up at 7, so the officers will be out very early. So, in terms of our preparations, we are ready; we're just waiting for tomorrow."

Jules Vasquez
"How many things are in motion to make tomorrow's election possible?"

Josephine Tamai
"Well, in terms of that, what we do is that we have the Returning Officers and the Presiding Officers, who are the ones who issue the ballot papers - they are the ones who come to our offices to collect those ballot papers. What they do is to take it a secure place - which we won't disclose - so that tomorrow morning, they could have them in hand for them to distribute. So in terms of the number of persons coming in, it's for each division, it's the Returning Officer, the Election Clerk, and the Presiding Officer. Here at the department, what they do is that they go through each and every single book to verify that all the ballot papers are accounted for, and that they signed off on it."

Jules Vasquez
"How many public officers will be deployed tomorrow to facilitate the election?"

Josephine Tamai
"In terms of the public officers, we have almost 3,000 because it's a large amount, and we also have the police officers who are also public officer as well."

Jules Vasquez
"And that is a larger number because it's a double election."

Josephine Tamai
"Yes, it's because it's a double election, so we have to double up all our efforts throughout the country."

Jules Vasquez
"Okay, now everything has come down to this - months of planning and preparation. Are you confident that everything that you planned is in as good a position as possible, and that things will go smoothly tomorrow?"

Josephine Tamai
"Yes, I am sure that things will go smoothly because like I said, these are preparations that have been done well in advanced. All the stations have been checked, and the only thing that I might want to say might be a challenge - well not for the department, but in terms of voters coming out - with the weather and everything, we're hoping, and we want the voters to actually come out and cast their ballots so that we may have a high voter turn-out this year."

And indeed, we all hope for a good turnout - after all, it's a public and bank holiday - there's no reason not to vote - and if you're worrying about the weather - we'll have the forecast on that a little later.

OAS Observer Team Ready To Go

They've toured the country - received training in the elections process and the head, Frank Almaguer today told us that so far he is impressed with how things are run:

Ambassador Frank Almaguer - Head of OAS Observer Team To Belize
"We are, in the first place, very impressed with the quiet approach to managing an election that we've seen here in Belize. All of the information, in terms of the mechanics, they are all in place, or are getting in place. We know that the voting places are ready to be opened tomorrow morning, as we understand it. We will have - tomorrow - 22 OAS election observers, and those observers will hopefully manage to cover 100% of the voting places in the country. So, in the course of the day, we'll have a pretty good understanding of the process as it is taking place, and of course, we will remain in the various communities until the last vote is counted. We really appreciate the courtesy with which we have been received. There are always issues that come up as one begins to understand the process. One or another group will raise some concerns. Our job here is to observe, and in the end, to provide whatever observations or recommendations we may have, not only to the Belizean Authorities, but also to the OAS Permanent Council."

Jules Vasquez
"Is there anything specifically that observers are trained to look for in an election?"

Ambassador Frank Almaguer
"Well, obviously, as an organization, the member states are committed to the democratic process. Elections are a vital part of that process, and we expect - we assume - that elections are competitive - that is that they are 2 or more candidates - that they are open - that is that all the voters can vote - that they are fair - that it's an opportunity to votes to be counted objectively, and in end, for the process to lead to the formation of a government elected by the citizens."

After the election, the Observer team will submit its report to the OAS. If they observe any irregularities - their job is not to intervene but to include it in their report.

This is the first OAS observer team to monitor elections in Belize...

What The Streets Are Saying About The Double Election

Today our intern Robin Schaffer took to the streets to find out how strong the feeling is to take it to the polls tomorrow:

Robin Schaffer
"Tomorrow is Elections Day, will you go out and exercise your right to vote?"

Interviewee #1
"Yes, Ma'am"

Robin Schaffer
"Are you going to vote?"

Interviewee #2
"I certainly will."

Robin Schaffer
"Okay, great, thank you very much."

Interviewee #3
"I am going to put my 'x' on the correct one, and I wish all the Belizeans would do the same too."

Robin Schaffer
"Will you go out and vote?"

Interviewee #4
"Of course I will. I will exercise my right to vote."

Robin Schaffer
"Are you going to exercise your right to vote?"

Interviewee #5
"Yes."

Robin Schaffer
"Are you a first-time voter?"

Interviewee #6
"Definitely, sure, I think it's my sacred right, and it only comes around once every 5 years - in this case 4 years. So, Definitely, I'm going to exercise my right."

Robin Schaffer
"Are you going to exercise your right to vote?"

Interviewee #7
"Yes I will."

Robin Schaffer
"For both General and Municipal, right?"

Interviewee #7
"To be honest, I vote in the district, so only the General."

Robin Schaffer
"Tomorrow is the big double elections, are you going out and exercising your right to vote?"

Interviewee #8
"That's my right, and we need to exercise our right to vote, so for both General and Municipal Elections, yes."

Robin Schaffer
"Are you going to exercise your right to vote?"

Interviewee #9
"Yes, I'm going to do my voting tomorrow, and I want all the people make a list of what all the country needs. I wish everybody would have a nice Elections Day, and vote for the person they think is going to do the right job."

Robin Schaffer
"Tomorrow is the double elections, the big Elections Day. Will you exercise your right to vote?"

Interviewee #10
"Yes, I will. I have the right to do it and I will, if God permits. But my party will be the blue. I voting for strictly PUP all the way."

Interviewee #11
"Yes sure, I got to keep the voting the same way make it be balance."

Interviewee #12
"Yes I do, okay. I can tell you who i'll vote for. I'll vote for the red."

So let's hope that spirit is reflected at the polls and that there is a strong turnout. There was surely a strong turnout at Shell One-Stop Gas Station in Belize City tonight. Cars were lined up and jammed up on all sides - cueing up for gas - since we suspect most of them will be used in election machinery.

Indeed, it's a big day tomorrow....and tonight, this March 6th, this is the electoral map of the country showing what party controls which areas - if it looks overly red that's because the PUP's 4 divisions in the city are so small that they got lost in the wider national picture.

But tomorrow, all of that disappears, it's a clean slate, an open map - and you decide how to colour it, red, blue, or something new.

And of course you can watch every step of the election here on Channel 7 with our coverage of the Verdict 2012. Join Me, Mose Hyde and Sharon Marin tomorrow morning at 6:00 am, here on Channel 7, KREM TV and KREM Radio to kick off our coverage of the double election. We'll be joined by a slew of correspondents and panelists including Senator Godwin Hulse, Janelle Chanona, Jules Vasquez, Monica Bodden, Jim McFadzean and many, many others all across the country.

So I'll see you back here on Channel 7 tomorrow morning - until then, get some rest! 'cause we'll be up all night tomorrow!

To see live streaming click here: mms:200.32.198.190TheVerdict2012

Channel 7