Scheduled to take place on November 5, the US election is fast approaching with only seven days left to go. Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump are locked in a close battle in key states. Recent polling indicates that Harris has gained a slight edge over Trump nationally, with the latest TIPP poll showing her leading 48% to 47%. According to FiveThirtyEight, Harris leads nationally by 1.5 percentage points.
In Wisconsin, a poll conducted in Door County reveals that Harris leads Trump 50% to 47%, though this is within the margin of error of 5.7 percentage points. Notably, Harris enjoys an advantage among women, leading 55% to 41%, while Trump has an 18-point lead among men, showcasing the pronounced gender gap in support.
In Minnesota, Harris has a narrow lead of 48% to 45%, with only 2% of voters remaining undecided. The poll underscores that jobs and the economy are the primary concerns for voters. Similarly, a new survey in Michigan shows Harris ahead of Trump by three points, 47% to 44%, with 41.4% of respondents citing jobs and the economy as top issues.
Both Harris and Trump are rampin up their campaign efforts. The election process has been marred by incidents of vandalism, with incendiary devices destroying ballots at two drop boxes in Oregon and Washington. Officials have described this as a “direct attack on democracy.”
This morning, an SUV caught fire outside the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) building in Belmopan City. The vehicle appeared to be a grey Toyota RAV4. Reports are that the SUV belongs to a consultant working with NEMO.
Video footage of the incident shows the Belmopan Fire Department responding quickly to control the fire. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is still unknown.
A week after Albert Area Representative Tracy Taegar-Panton was elected as the new interim leader of the United Democratic Party (UDP) at a convention called by the Alliance for Democracy, she and many of her supporters arrived at the UDP headquarters on Youth for the Future Drive, demanding access to the building. Panton said she was armed with a legal right to claim the office after she had received a letter from Phillipa Bailey, the trustee for the headquarters building.
However, following the series of tense events at the headquarters, a statement was addressed to Commissioner of Police Chester Williams. In it, Secretary General Shari Medina on behalf of Party Chairman Michael Peyrefitte stated that Phillipa Bailey “is NOT, and has never been, a Trustee of the United Democratic Party.” According to Peyrefitte, the government transferred the land for the headquarters to the UDP on June 16, 2010. At that time, according to Peyrefitte, Bailey was the Secretary General and the appropriate signatory, but she resigned in February 2013 and was asked to return all party assets.
The faction led by Moses “Shyne” Barrow stressed that they “are the sole owners of the property” and that Bailey cannot transfer rights she no longer holds. Peyrefitte noted that according to the UDP Constitution, anyone managing assets must do so at the direction of the Central Executive Committee, which has not authorised any changes regarding these assets.
UDP Deputy Chairman Alberto August has filed a police report concerning the ‘breaking and entering’ of the UDP headquarters.
Panton told the media yesterday that Medina is no longer the Secretary General and announced that Lyn Ross had been appointed as the new Secretary General after an “urgent meeting” with her central executive committee on Saturday.
News Five has confirmed that a drug plane was found last week near Graham Creek Village in the Toledo District. News 5 understands that Belize Defence Force soldiers discovered the hidden plane during a sweep of an illegal airstrip in the area on October 23rd. The hidden crash-landed plane, marked with Mexican flag insignia, was partially concealed with cohune leaves about 30 to 50 meters from the airstrip itself. Though no cargo was located on-site, a satellite phone, GPS, and a notebook containing critical information were recovered.
According to sources, the area around the airstrip showed signs of recent use, including a patchwork of cement repairs and vegetation concealing the runway.
Further inspections led the patrol through three abandoned coca plantations, one of which had recently been cleared. We understand that a suspected illegal entry route into Guatemala was also found. This track, appearing regularly travelled, crosses two bridges. It is believed that the route is used for drug and human trafficking.
If you’ve been following our social media pages, you’ll know about the dramatic and hostile takeover of the United Democratic Party’s headquarters in Belize City. That takeover was led by Albert Area Representative Tracy Taegar Panton and her supporters against Moses “Shyne” Barrow, who we understand has filed a criminal complaint against those who participated in today’s event. It’s another escalation for the battle for the party and its organs, and as we saw today, Panton and her supporters are not backing down. News Five’s Marion Ali was there in the midst of it all and has the following report.
Marion Ali, Reporting
The U.D.P headquarters building on Youth for the Future Drive was the venue of a ruckus this morning when the Albert Area Representative, Tracy Taegar-Panton, along with standard bearers of the U.D.P and about fifty party supporters showed up and demanded access to the building. It came a week and a day after Panton led a convention at the Belize City Centre at which U.D.P. delegates voted her as the new U.D.P. Today she said she was armed with legal right to claim the office.
Tracy Taegar-Panton
Tracy Taegar-Panton, Area Representative, Albert
“We also sought the trustee for this building to have occupation of the building and to use this building for the work of the United Democratic Party – Philippa Bailey, former Secretary General of the United Democratic Party.”
Reporter
“And this morning, what transpired?”
Tracy Taegar-Panton
“We came over and we took occupation of the building.”
Reporter
“Forcefully?”
Tracy Taegar-Panton
“No, it was not forcefully. The door was opened for us. A server from the magistrate court was here to serve the relevant documents and the door was open, and we walked in.”
But while the trustee for the building, former U.D.P Secretary General, Philipa Bailey handed over the documents to Panton’s team, and she met an open office on the lower flat, gaining access to the upper flat proved to be a bit more difficult. The group managed to gain access to Wave radio, housed on the right-hand side of the building, but up to the time we left after four p.m., the keys to the hall and other office area on the left of the upper flat had still not been delivered. It was unclear who had the keys to that door. Panton had with her two attorneys, Orson Elrington and Godwin Haylock. Haylock explained the legalities of the property ownership
Godwin Haylock
Godwin Haylock, Attorney-at-law
“We have a sole trustee of the party when it comes to the property, this headquarters, and her name is Philippa Griffith Bailey. She’s actually a former secretary general for this party, a UDP stalwart a no-nonsense secretariat who reigned during the Barrow era, that’s Dean Barrow era to make it clear to you guys. She has been consulted by our party leader. She has accepted the will of the delegates. We are very pleased that the majority of the delegates are now behind this new party leader. What happens is that Miss Griffith Bailey is aware that she has a fiduciary duty, one that she doesn’t just act in haste. She gave it long thought; she didn’t do it before the majority of the delegates, that is, were satisfied that we were under a new leadership. I know she has now given the nod to the new party leader to say she is in full support of the new party leader taking control of the building itself.”
Panton named Lynette Singh-Ross as the new Secretary General. Marion Ali for News Five.
The ruckus between the two sides saw supporter for Moses “Shyne” Barrow, Ian Jones, who occupied one of the offices on the lower flat, leave momentarily and return. He told the media that the locks for which he had keys were removed, but Lake I Standard Bearer, Cecil Jenkins, who was at the office when the crowd went there. We hear from both men and then from Panton on how she wishes the dispute to be resolved.
Cecil Jenkins
Cecil Jenkins, Standard Bearer, Lake I, U.D.P.
“I personally opened this door that wasn’t locked to leave myself out, to let myself out. It wasn’t locked. It was open. You could have just turned the latch and it’s open.”
Ian Jones
Ian Jones, Supporter, Moses “Shyne Barrow
“If I have the only key for the lock, how did they get in? (Ruckus)”
Tracy Taegar-Panton
Tracy Taegar-Panton, Area Representative, Albert
“Sixty-six percent of our delegates is an overwhelming mandate and they have spoken. We are not trying to oust him out of the party, we are not trying to eject him from the party. There is a new party leader. I will take up the mandate and I will lead the mandate of the people. He is free to run in Mesop as a standard bearer for the United Democratic Party in Mesop.”
Former U.D.P. Minister Anthony “Boots” Martinez was also out to support Panton and told the media that the process that Moses “Shyne” Barrow used to claim he and others were expelled from the party was not the proper procedure. Martinez said he has to support Panton in order to protect the party from dictatorship.
Anthony “Boots” Martinez, Former U.D.P Minister
“The process of expelling any member of the party – the Central Executive meets and must make a recommendation to cause an investigation based on infraction to the Ethics Committee. The Ethics Committee in turn investigates whatsoever you say is the infringement of the Constitution. The Ethics Committee writes the people and say, come before me and explain yourself. And when that happens, then they will make a decision. And when they make the decision, the person could appeal to the National Party Council, which had the authority to overturn or to keep whatsoever it is they were accused of. So there is a process, and that’s what I am saying. That is my fundamental problem – the processes. And where that is concerned, to me, I have a fundamental problem, because that is opening the door for anybody who has a dissenting voice, for you to throw them out of the party and fire them. But by what authority?”
Former U.D.P Minister, Edmond Castro was also in support of Tracy Taegar-Panton. He told the media that Moses “Shyne” Barrow only needed to exercise humility. Now all he needs to do, according to Castro is to step aside for Panton.
Edmond Castro, Former U.D.P Minister
“I was one of the persons that voted and lobbied for Shyne and lobbied my colleagues in the Caucus for Change, lobbied to give Shyne a run. If I and any of my colleagues was in a two percent situation as he was, none of us would have had the opportunity to run for this party or be a representative of this party, none of us. And so Shyne was given a great opportunity and he had all opportunity to humble himself and do right, knowing his past and his background, and the party bend over ethics-wise, backward, and allow him to become the leader – not become the leader – allow him to even run as a member of this party. And so all the brother needed to have done was just humble himself.”
So while both Tracy Taegar-Panton and Moses “Shyne” Barrow claim they are the legitimate leader of the United Democratic Party. News Five checked with a reputable attorney at law who said that Barrow has clout in terms of who makes the decisions for the party in the legislature and that Barrow could argue the chairman of the U.D.P. was not there to approve the delegates list. He said the U.D.P. Constitution says nothing about when there is a U.D.P. event that the chairman does not attend to officiate. He did say, however, that Panton and her supporters had all rights to hold a convention that was triggered by a majority of the delegates. How this matter ends will likely end up in the courts.
The struggle for control of the U.D.P. headquarters stretched on for most of the day, with police maintaining a vigilant watch for any potential unrest. Amid the chaotic takeover, Tracy Panton and her supporters insisted they had full legal grounds to occupy the building, citing trustee Phillipa Bailey’s approval. However, Commissioner of Police Chester Williams suggested that the situation might not be so straightforward. We asked Williams which legal processes might be overlooked, and here’s what he had to say.
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
“I look at the situation from a legal standpoint. If you have a landlord and the landlord wishes to displace his tenant, the landlord cannot just bring a new tenant to the building and say to the current tenant, you need to leave. There is a legal process that you must follow. And the legal process cannot be circumvented by some other process. And it is sad to see that we have instances where people who are trained attorneys and should know better, um, that certain documents do not carry the force of law. And if it is that Philippa Bailey was the trustee of the property and she was holding on trust for the UDP, The question then lies as to who is a UDP? Shyne is a UDP, Panton is a UDP. And so there’s a dispute there. In order to resolve that dispute, the police must not be the arbitrator of that issue. That is an issue that ought to be resolved in a court of law. And so if the Panton fraction believe that They have all rights to the building. Then the proper thing for them to have done as to take the matter before the court, perhaps request Phillip Bailey, who is a trustee to issue shine with a notice to quit perhaps a month if after the one month period expires, he do not quit. And notice of quit simply means notice to leave. That’s a legal term. He did not leave within that time. Then they will then take that to the court and apply for an eviction order. If the court sees it fit after having heard all the evidence and then the court issue that eviction order, then the police can then act with them to forcefully evict him from the building.”
