With the defunct People's Pulse scheduled for shutdown after the 1998 general elections, in which the UDP lost, it was thought that the party needed a new image.

With this in mind, the first issue of the newspaper rolled off the press in October 1998, even as the Pulse faced unpaid bills.

As the official print organ of the United Democratic Party, The Guardian consistently criticizes the policies of the opposition People's United Party, whether in or out of government, similar to its PUP counterpart The Belize Times with regard to the UDP.

A similar incident occurred prior to the 2003 by-election in October contested by the March loser John Saldivar.

Panton editorialized in the Guardian again about alleged abuses by the EBD and earned himself its ire once more, though Saldivar won the election anyway.