 One controversy as the election date drew near was Attorney General Dean Barrow's rushed appointment of Manuel Sosa to the position of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on 19 August to replace the ailing George Singh, just days before the election.Then-opposition leader Said Musa objected to this last minute appointment, and after his party took power was able to have it overturned on the grounds that he had not been properly consulted on the appointment as required by the constitution.The National Alliance for Belizean Rights, which had run in coalition with the UDP in the previous election, chose to run on its own despite its sole member in the House, Philip Goldson, standing down.