UDP Convention Nears as Three-Way Battle for Chairman Overshadows Leadership Endorsement

With less than two days to go before the United Democratic Party’s long-awaited national convention, all eyes are now fixed on the increasingly unpredictable three-way race for party chairman.

Acting Chairman Alberto August confirmed today that the leadership posts of party leader and both deputy leaders are uncontested. 

The competition for chairman has become the defining showdown of Sunday’s event.

August outlined the convention schedule, noting that registration begins at 9 a.m., followed by the formal program at 10. Delegates will then endorse Tracy Panton as party leader, Hugo Patt as first deputy party leader, and Miguel Guerra as second deputy party leader, positions already settled behind closed doors.

But what happens next is where the real drama lies.

Roosevelt Blades, Sheena Pitts, and John Saldivar are all vying for the chairmanship, a race that has split the party into powerful camps.

Pitts is backed by incoming leader Tracy Panton. Blades carries the support of Mesopotamia’s Lee Mark Chang, one of the UDP’s strongest financiers. Saldivar, despite years of scandal, has the full backing of the northern caucus and Deputy Leader Patt.

With the party promising “unity,” the chairmanship contest threatens to expose deep fractures instead.

August says the party will begin the day by confirming its quorum before proceeding with voting and ceremonial proceedings. “We begin with ensuring that we have the required quorum in place for us to begin taking the polls,” he explained. He added that the event will feature the introduction of standard bearers and an address by guest speaker Lady Kathy Esquivel, who he says “graciously accepted” the UDP’s invitation.