Nuñez officially elected as mayor

It’s official: the three-week stalemate over a successor to Jose Coye as Mayor of Belize City is over. At a mid-afternoon meeting of the full council at City Hall today, Marshall Nuñez emerged with the majority vote to confirm him as the new Belize City Mayor and Steven Latchman as his Deputy. Information out of City Hall is that Latchman broke the tie, by switching sides and voting for Nuñez. He had originally supported Councilor Merilyn Young for the mayorship. Eric Kirkwood, the man whose vote was considered crucial to breaking the deadlock last week, came in from the U.S. to cast his vote in person. He also gave the nod to Nuñez, providing him with a clear six to three majority over Young. Councilor Darrel Carter then nominated Latchman for Deputy Mayor and he too was elected by the same six to three margin. In a telephone conversation this evening, Carter told News Five that the council is relieved that the matter, which was fast becoming an embarrassment, has finally been brought to an end without the intervention of central government. The controversy now over, all councilors pledged to carry on as one cohesive unit in the governing of Belize City.