2020 Belizean general election facts for kids
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All 31 seats in the House of Representatives 16 seats needed for a majority |
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General elections will be held in Belize on 11 November 2020 to elect the 31 members of the House of Representatives.
Date
The previous general elections were held on 4 November 2015, and the new National Assembly was opened on 13 November 2015. According to Section 84 of the Constitution of Belize, the National Assembly must be dissolved "five years from the date when the two Houses of the former National Assembly first met" unless dissolved sooner by the Governor-General of Belize upon the advice of the prime minister. A general election must be called within three months of a dissolution, which means the latest possible date for the next Belizean general election is 13 February 2021.
Despite the five-year term, three of the last four general elections have been called at least a year early. Both Prime Minister Dean Barrow and the opposition People's United Party are on record supporting lowering the maximum term of the National Assembly to four years.
Barrow initially stated his intention to retire as Prime Minister no later than the end of 2019, but changed his mind to stay on until 2020 at the urging of his Cabinet. However, he said that he would still retire as the United Democratic Party Leader at the party's national convention and leadership election, which was first tentatively scheduled for 9 February 2020. He strongly hinted at a snap election in early 2020. But in May 2019, Barrow dismissed that remark and said that elections would be held in November 2020.
On 5 October 2020, Barrow called the elections for 11 November, with Nominations Day on 21 October. The Writ of Election was formally filed by the Governor-General immediately afterward. He advised the Governor-General to dissolve the National Assembly on 6 November.
