Opposition candidate and former prime minister, Jose Maria Neves won Cape Verde’s presidential election on Sunday October 17, defeating his main rival and the ruling party’s flagbearer Carlos Veiga.
While President Jorge Carlos Fonseca will be stepping down after serving the maximum two five-year terms allowed by the constitution, 61-year-old Neves who served as prime minister from 2000-2016, will inherit responsibility for stabilising the Atlantic archipelago nation’s tourism-driven economy after the COVID-19 pandemic drove it deep into recession.
Neves won 51.5 per cent of the vote according to results based on 97 per cent of votes counted. A first-round absolute majority means the election does not need to go to a second round run-off.
Neves had 51.7% of the vote based on official results from 99.4% of polling stations, ahead of Veiga with 42.4%. Five other candidates all won less than 2% each. Turnout for the election was 48.3 percent.