Unequal Constituencies Persist as Redistricting Stalls  

Belize’s long-delayed redistricting exercise is expected to continue into next year, as the Elections and Boundaries Commission works through constitutional and legal issues that emerged during its 2023 review. In a statement today, the commission says it completed a redistricting report and submitted proposals to the National Assembly in July 2023, but those recommendations were never enacted. Since then, it has called for a review of section eighty-nine and ninety of the constitution, arguing that apparent inconsistencies in the law make it difficult to address population imbalances among constituencies while remaining within the current limit of thirty-ne electoral divisions. According to the Commission, the voter landscape has changed significantly since the last exercise, with the Elections and Boundaries Department now recording approximately two hundred and twelve registered electors across the country. While updated voter data and preliminary technical work have already been completed, the Commission says it must finalize the legal framework, analyze current electoral data and develop new proposals before presenting them to the National Assembly. It now anticipates the redistricting process will extend into 2027. Any changes approved through the exercise would only take effect at the next general election held after the new boundaries are enacted.

 

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.

 

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