General Information
At stake in this election:
- 29 seats in the House of Representatives
Description of government structure:
- Chief of State: Queen ELIZABETH II *
- Head of Government: Prime Minister Manuel ESQUIVEL
- Assembly: Belize has a bicameral National Assembly consisting of the Senate with 8 seats and the House of Representatives with 29 seats.
* Queen ELIZABETH II is represented by Governor General Sir Colville YOUNG.
Description of electoral system:
- The Queen is N/A N/A.
- In the Senate 8 members are appointed by the governor-general to serve 5-year terms*. In the House of Representatives 29 members are elected by simple majority vote to serve 5-year terms.
* Of the eight senators, five are appointed on the advice of the prime minister, two on the advice of the leader of the opposition, and one on the advice of the Belize Advisory Council.
Main parties in the electoral race:
- Party: People's United Party (PUP)
- Leader: Said MUSA
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 26
- Seats won in last House of Representatives election: 13
- Party: United Democratic Party (UDP)
- Leader: Manuel ESQUIVEL
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 3
- Seats won in last House of Representatives election: 15
Last Parliamentary election:
- General elections were last held on June 30, 1993.
Population and number of registered voters:
- Population: 230,160 (July 1998 est.)
- Registered Voters: 94,173 ( 1998 )
Gender Data:
· Female Population: 114,319 (1998)
· Is Belize a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (7 March 1990)
· Has Belize ratified CEDAW: Yes (16 May 1990)
· Gender Quota: No
· Female candidates in this election: Yes
· Number of Female Parliamentarians: 2
· Human Development Index Position: 101 (2014)
· Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A
Disability Data:
· Is Belize a signatory to CRPD: Yes (9 May 2011)
· Has Belize ratified CRPD: Yes (2 June 2011)
· Population with a disability: 34,524 (est.)