Global Politicsupdated 23m ago2 min read
Cape Verde Voters Begin Presidential Election With Jose Maria Neves vs Joana Rosa
“a vote hinging on slowing down persistent emigration.”
“Many voters feel distant from their leaders and want a president who understands their daily difficulties”
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Incumbent Jose Maria Neves faces former Justice Minister Joana Rosa, first female candidate. Around 419,000–420,000 voters are eligible across six candidates.
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Cape Verde votes Sunday
Voters began casting ballots in Cape Verde on Sunday as President Jose Maria Neves faced Joana Rosa, the country’s first female presidential candidate, in a race focused on slowing persistent emigration.
More than 300,000 people were eligible to vote on Sunday from 8am to 6pm, and the vote would choose from six presidential candidates.
About 420,000 Cape Verdeans were called to the polls this Sunday, with voting beginning at 8:00 a.m. (10:00 in Spain) and six candidates contesting.
Reuters said polls were set to open at 8 a.m. (0900 GMT) and close at 6 p.m. (1900 GMT), with official provisional results expected in two or three days.
Candidates must clinch more than 50 percent of the vote to win, or the top two would face a run-off vote on November 29.
Neves, Rosa and parties
Neves, a member of the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV), was tipped to be the favourite and had served as prime minister for 15 years before becoming president in 2021. The 61-year-old lawyer Joana Rosa, backed by the Movement for Democracy (MpD) in opposition, was the first woman to run for the presidency since Portugal’s independence in 1975. Rosa was the first woman to run for president since independence in 1975, and her party governed for 10 years before the May vote.
The PAICV won the parliamentary majority in May, ending a decade of MpD-led government, and a Rosa victory would again place the presidency and the government on rival political fronts. The country runs a hybrid parliamentary-presidential system of government that sees the president enjoy veto authority and a mediating role.
Emigration, youth and stakes
The election hinged on slowing down persistent emigration, and nearly 77,000 diaspora Cape Verdeans were registered to vote at embassies abroad. Neves pledged to build cross-party support to improve housing, healthcare and education, create jobs and raise wages, and incumbency gave him greater visibility, including among overseas voters. Many voters felt distant from the political class over concerns that it didn’t understand their daily difficulties.
Rosa’s candidacy challenged traditional expectations about women’s roles in a society that remains “very patriarchal,” and Rosa centered her campaign on maintaining a balance of power. The National Elections Commission (CNE) activated 1,302 polling stations, and the AU mission held consultations before the polls opened with authorities of the Cabo Verdean government, the CNE, UN agencies, the Authority Regulatory for Social Communication (ARC), and representatives of civil society.