UDP Leaders Unite for September 10th Celebrations in Belize City

For a few hours yesterday, the factions of the United Democratic Party came together and partook in the September 10th celebrations in Belize City.  Both the leader for the Alliance for Democracy, Tracy Panton and the leader of the United Democratic Party, Moses Shyne Barrow, were donned in their red and white outfits in the pan of a pickup truck as part of the parade.  In a statement issued by Barrow yesterday, he wrote, quote, “It is no coincidence that the LOO and I united on the day we celebrate the 227th Anniversary of the coming together of Belizeans from Flowers Bank to Belize Town, Baymen, free and enslaved, to fight against the common enemy who wished to conquer Belize.”  End of quote.  Panton spoke with Love News on yesterday’s coming together and the road ahead.

Tracy Panton, Leader of the Opposition: “If I am asking all Belizeans to come together to mark the significant milestone in our development,  then our party must be able to come all together. You know what is happening with this, what I consider a rogue government, a rogue administration that has the very sovereignty and not only our sovereignty our territorial integrity at risk, that the only way forward in my view is for the United Democratic Party to come together to focus on the issues that are severely affecting our nation, that are affecting our people and we have our own internal issues. There is no magic wand. All things don’t get fixed overnight. But I am intent as the leader to bring this party together and I have to demonstrate that I’m willing to do that on all fronts. And what not a better time than a time when we focus on the very people whose shoulders we stand on.”

The internal struggles within the UDP, which intensified after the March 2025 General Elections, have been a subject of intense media scrutiny and public debate. The party entered the election deeply fractured, with both Barrow and Panton’s factions fielding candidates and laying claim to the party’s leadership. Legal battles and public spats over party control have been a recurring theme, with court rulings and press releases offering a play-by-play of the leadership dispute.  While the joint appearance suggests a potential truce, the political landscape remains complex. It remains to be seen whether this symbolic gesture will translate into a lasting, unified front.