“People Will Take Some Convincing”: Deputy PM on March 2027 Elections

The People’s United Party may be confident about its chances in the March 2027 municipal elections, but Deputy Prime Minister Cordel Hyde is warning party supporters not to mistake that confidence for a guaranteed victory.

Hyde issued the warning on Saturday during the PUP’s National Party Council in Belize City, where the party officially introduced its municipal candidates and councillors for the upcoming elections.

The PUP is aiming for victory across all nine municipalities, but Hyde said the party must not become complacent.

“Just because we got great Mayoral and council candidates means we just wa show up and win,” Hyde told party supporters. “Just because we win like crazy in 2018, 2021, 2024, and 2025, means we can just show up in mass in 2027 and win. It noh work like that.”

Hyde said the party must recognise that the political environment has changed and that voters will need to be better convinced. “It will still take some serious hard work,” he said. “Dah some different vibes right now and we have to be real to people.”

“So we need to do more than ever, work harder than ever, be better than ever, to convince the people more than ever and go from house to house and talk to every single voter better than you ever ever had, because people will take some convincing,” Hyde added.

“Do not take it for granted that because the UDP is less than their best, that we are just going to host, we have to work hard,” he said.

UDP Challengers Take Aim at Town and City Council Incumbents

The UDP launched its own campaign last week under the slogan “911, It’s a National Emergency,” which pointed to the cost of living, crime and municipal services. 

Meanwhile, Party Leader and Prime Minister John Briceño predicted another PUP victory.