As the June 2026 municipal elections approach, Belize’s ruling People’s United Party (PUP) finds itself navigating a tense internal challenge: narrowing a flood of candidate applications down to a final 67-seat election slate amid unprecedented interest from hopefuls across the country.
A total of 115 aspiring candidates have put their names forward to compete for PUP’s nomination, leaving party leaders tasked with cutting nearly 50 applicants to finalize the party’s ticket ahead of the vote. Currently, the PUP holds 61 of the 67 municipal seats up for election, meaning incumbent officeholders already make up a large share of the possible nominees – but fresh challengers have flooded the race, particularly for top mayoral positions.
Eight new candidates have launched campaigns to challenge sitting PUP mayors, nearly all of whom have confirmed their intention to seek re-election. To unpack how the party will sort through the crowded field of applicants, PUP Secretary General Collet Montejo outlined the party’s structured, multi-step vetting and selection process in a recent public briefing.
Montejo emphasized that no candidate – whether a long-serving incumbent or a first-time aspirant – is guaranteed a spot on the election ticket. “Your application is just that. It’s not a rite of passage. There is nothing saying that you will be even on a slate if you are going to a contested convention or if you are going to be endorsed,” Montejo explained, stressing that all candidates will be evaluated through the same standardized process regardless of their current office holding status.
The party has divided the country into four regional caucuses – northern, southern, eastern, and western – that will work in parallel to review local candidates. A national-level campaign committee is scheduled to convene this coming Thursday to appoint a dedicated interview and vetting subcommittee, which will be given between one week and a maximum of two weeks to complete its evaluations before reporting back to the national committee. From there, the national campaign committee will compile its findings and forward recommendations to PUP’s national executive for final approval.
In cases where multiple candidates for a single position earn national executive approval, the party will hold a contested delegate convention to select the final nominee. For Belize City, the country’s largest municipality, the party has already confirmed it will use a delegate-based selection process, with more than 775 delegates expected to cast votes to determine the PUP’s final city slate.
Delegate allocations for Belize City are tied to the party’s performance in the most recent general election: each constituency receives one delegate for every 25 votes the PUP earned in that district, with local constituency executive committees selecting which members will serve as delegates. For other municipalities, the selection framework for contested races will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the national executive, with approved voter lists reviewed by all competing candidates before any internal vote.
Two local nomination contests have emerged as major points of attention for the party: the races in Belize City and Corozal Town. In Belize City, two sitting PUP councilors are vying to replace three-term incumbent Mayor Bernard Wagner, while in Corozal Town, challenger Shajerie Rogers – backed by Thea Ramirez Garcia – is aiming to unseat three-term incumbent Mayor Rigo Vellos, who is seeking re-election.
This report is adapted from a transcript of a televised evening news broadcast, with all original statements preserved and formatted for clarity.