São Tomé and Príncipe presidential election, 2011

The first round of the presidential elections in São Tomé and Príncipe in 2011 in the West African island nation of São Tomé and Príncipe was held on 17 May 2011, 7 August 2011 was followed by a runoff.

The by then Acting President Fradique de Menezes had ruled the country for two terms and could not be taken through a third time for election under the Constitution. The final result saw the 74 -year-old Manuel Pinto da Costa as the winner, who narrowly prevailed against the Parliament speaker Evaristo Carvalho.

At the first round about 120 candidates were involved. The candidate of the party of the President Menezes, Movimento Democrático the forcas because Mudança - Partido Liberal, MDFM -PL was, represented Delfim Neves both the MDFM -PL, as well as his own Partido de Convergencia Democrática, PCD -GR. The independent candidate Pinto da Costa won the most votes, but could not win a majority of votes that would have been necessary for a win in the first round. Carvalho, of the ruling party Acção Democrática Independente (ADI ), a former Prime Minister and current Speaker of the National Assembly of São Tomé and Príncipe, was second. On the same day a runoff between Pinto da Costa and Carvalho was announced. Pinto da Costa received the support of the majority of the losing candidates and a comfortable majority for it was generally expected.

Pinto da Costa won the August 7 concluded election by a margin of only 5% and should take office on September 3.

Background

Manuel Pinto da Costa was already once, right after independence in 1975, President of São Tomé and Príncipe. He ruled the islands as socialist one-party state under the leadership of the Movimento de São Tomé e Príncipe de Libertação ( Liberation Movement of São Tomé and Príncipe, MLSTP ). Only in 1991 did the democratization of the country, the registration of opposition parties and to the first free presidential election. Pinto da Costa was not then begun and instead had announced his retirement from politics. Since the MLSTP presented no alternative candidates, was then chosen Miguel Trovoada unopposed. Despite his original declaration to withdraw from politics, Pinto da Costa then took part in the presidential elections in 1996 in part, but was narrowly beaten by Trovoada. In 2001, he ran against the reigning President Fradique de Menezes, but was again not successful.

2005 Pinto da Costa left the MLSTP. Currently, the party of Aurélio Martins is performed, the sixth was in the first round. Other major candidates were the Prime Minister Maria das Neves and former Defense Minister Elsa Pinto, both competed as independents. Pinto da Costa's main rival, Carvalho, represented the ADI, who won the 2010 parliamentary elections and the party of the ruling Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada is.

Choice

92 639 citizens were registered to vote. Presented for the first round, headed by Victor Correia Electoral Commission established a turnout of 68 percent. Of the 120 candidates Da Costa and Carvalho were indeed the most votes ( 35.6 or 21.8 percent), but none of them won a majority of votes. Delfim Neves and Maria das Neves won both substantial share of the vote, ( each more than 14 percent), but only the two highest ranked allowed in the runoff. Following the announcement of the results, the most defeated candidates including Delfim Neves, Maria das Neves and Aurélio Martins da Costa supported.

The African Union, the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries and the Central African Economic Community sent observers to the elections and declared them free and fair. The only major conflict that was observed was a boycott of 30,000 people from five villages of São Tomé's north coast, in protest against unsatisfactory living conditions. The ballot boxes were opened in these villages on July 20, again without results, however, something changed in the allocation of seats.

Results

Reactions

Some analysts have voiced concern that Pinto da Costa could lead to a return of the authoritarian regime that characterized his previous presidency.