Was Pollard’s Defeat Decided Before Convention Day?

There has been plenty talk about money and influence following Sunday’s PUP convention in Belize City, where Deputy Mayor Eluide Miller emerged victorious over Allan Pollard. But Mahler disputes the claim that massive spending determined the outcome. Mahler says the results had little to do with money on convention day, and much more to do with political allegiances that were forged long before voters entered the convention grounds. He says, for his own part, he spent less than fifteen hundred dollars that day.

 

Anthony Mahler, Area representative, Pickstock

“ I think it’s a disservice when you spew what I will call nonsense in millions of dollars being spent. That is an irresponsible approach from the media. And I will tell you straight that if I spent fifteen hundred dollars on that day, it was a lot. Now, conventions cost money, yes. But if you have one thousand T-shirt out there at twelve dollars, that’s $12,000. How it reach two million dollars? How it reach a million dollars? Right?”

 

Reporter

“The banners. There’s way much more than just that. And banner, and then- You have to mobilize people – It cannot be 1,500, sir. You’re, you’re…”

 

Anthony Mahler

“I’m not saying that. I’m saying what I spent on that day just to give people for food and stuff. And before- And, uh, obviously there- … walking around Belize … uh, there, there’s going to be a cost to everything. You have to have people in your shirts, yes. But it’s not what you think because it’s a, a delegate convention, so it’s not as costly as you think. What the work that we did leading up to the convention is important. The alliances that were created were important and we held those blocks tightly knit together, and that’s what delivered Eluide. Listen to me, that young man worked sixteen hours a day. I saw it many days.”

 

Who Really Runs the PUP’s Eastern Caucus?

 

Beyond the result and campaign spending, Sunday’s convention has sparked talk of a political showdown between Anthony Mahler and Cordel Hyde. Mahler-backed Eluide Miller defeated Hyde’s preferred candidate, Allan Pollard, fueling speculation that Mahler is emerging as a new Belize City power broker. But Mahler rejects that narrative, saying he was simply carrying out his duties as PUP Deputy Leader. Francis Fonseca also expects Hyde to rally behind the party and help secure victory in March.

 

Anthony Mahler, Area Representative, Pickstock

“Listen to me. That’s nonsense. Honorable Cordel Hyde has won, I believe, five or six times. Jules Vasquez said, I win one and a half times. And that’s fine. He is the boss of the city. I will continue to follow him. But I have a duty as a deputy party leader for the Eastern Caucus, which is, to me, the most powerful caucus in the country. And I don’t take that lightly. So if Honorable Dolores needs me to go in one of her villages or to go work, I will go. If Honorable Marconi Leal needs me to go, I will go. If Ms. Lorna McKay wants me to go in Queens Square, I will go. If Gilroy wants me to go in Port, I will go. It’s not about flexing or who. That is my responsibility. Now, if I’m not the deputy for the East then I will still, because I grew up in sports and it is fitting. So I understand about teamwork. If I have an opportunity to go in and help somebody who is a colleague of mine, then it is my fiduciary responsibility to do so, I believe, as a politician. And that is where the strength came from. Because if you ask many of them, leading up to 2025, I was on the ground with them..”

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

Watch the full newscast here: