After being in power for seven years the People’s United Party was desperate to win the 2006 Belizean municipal elections and govern the country like never before. It has never lost even one election whether general election, municipal elections or Village council elections since coming to power after the 1998 Belizean general election on 27 August 1998. The UDP however, was faced with a shocking traumatic defeat in the 1998 general election with only three of the UDP Candidates getting elected in that General election. Barrow and Member of Parliament for Mesopotamia constituency, Michael Finnegan were the only two Members of Parliament and Area Representatives to be re-elected to their constituencies. Erwin Contreras narrowly defeated PUP’s Amin Hegar In Cayo West constituency and became the only newly elected UDP MP and Area Representative. Several UDP Ministers and Members went down to defeat. One of them was prominent then Leader of the UDP, Manuel Esquivel who also served as Prime Minister of Belize since 1984 and has been leading the UDP since 1983.