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Voters in the island nation of Cape Verde will vote for the country’s next president on Sunday.
The poll marks the end of the second and final term of the fourth president of Cape Verde’s history, Jorge Carlos Fonseca, since the country became independent from Portugal in 1975. The second round of voting is tentatively scheduled to be held on October 31, if no candidate gets the majority.
This will be the seventh round of elections since Cape Verde’s transition to free and multi-party elections in 1991. This 10 island archipelago on the coast of West Africa is often hailed as a model democracy on the African continent because it continues to rank high in the transparency index and political freedom.
A record seven candidates ran for the election-but the most powerful contenders are the two former prime ministers: Carlos Vega, supported by the Democratic Movement (Mpd) and the Democratic and Independent Cape Verde (UCID); He José Maria Neves campaigned with the support of the African Independence Party of Cape Verde (PAICV).
Mpd and PAICV have dominated the political arena in Cape Verde for decades and have been key players in the country’s struggle for independence and its aftermath-this remains a key mobilization factor for today’s electoral activities.
“In parliamentary elections, the total votes of MpD and PAICV accounted for more than 90% of all votes and almost all parliamentary seats,” Edda, Assistant Professor of African Studies at the Institute of the University of Lisbon and author of the book “Party System in Young Democracies” Linna Sanches (Edalina Sanches) explained.
Front runner
The two main challengers who have attracted most media attention throughout the campaign have pledged to bring stability and consensus to deal with the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on a country that relies heavily on tourism.
As one of the founding members of MpD, Veiga is often praised for its role in helping to formulate the constitution, and the party played a central role in Cape Verde’s transition to democratization. The 71-year-old ambassador to the United States ended in 2020, and he served as prime minister from 1991 to 2000.
Neves, meanwhile, was elected as prime minister in 2001. He went on to hold the longest mandate in the country’s history, being elected three consecutive times until 2016. The 61-year-old is the former president and deputy of PAICV.
Cape Verde implements a semi-parliamentary system, the prime minister has executive power, and the president serves as the head of state and acts as a mediator.
Sanchez said: “The role of the president is far more than a ritual role,” he pointed out that it often lies in advocating consensus on key decisions and difficult disputes, ensuring stability and protecting the constitution.
“The president will not implement public policies, but they have the power to veto laws and oversee government actions,” Sanchez added.
problem
Cape Verde continues to fight the economic recession after output shrinking by 14.8% in 2020, partly due to the country’s dependence on tourism, which accounts for 25% of the economy.
In July, the Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister Olavo Correia (Olavo Correia) told parliament that the country is experiencing “the largest economic, financial and budgetary crisis in history.”
Before the vote on Sunday, political discussions focused on a range of issues, including urban violence, the need for a nonpartisan public sector, and economic diversification.
“The debate is not about election promises, but about the promise of influencing solutions to key issues-from justice to health, and the president’s role and independence on these issues,” Sanchez said.
Overseas voters
The large number of expatriates in Cape Verde, often referred to as the “Eleventh Island” of the archipelago, represents an important voting share, as foreign remittances account for 12.1% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
Approximately 500,000 people live on these islands, while it is estimated that more than 700,000 people live abroad, mainly in Europe and the United States.
However, observers warn that the rate of abstention is traditionally high abroad, and that this trend is expected to continue, with only about 57,000 voters registered outside Cape Verde.
However, the abstention rate is not unique to Cape Verdean immigrants-the abstention rate in the last presidential election was as high as 64.5%.
But Sanchez believes that the number of competitors this year and the existence of candidates such as Vega and Neves are “very mobilized”, which may offset this recent trend.
Nevertheless, the historical legacy of the main competing parties may begin to lose ground, especially among the young population of the country, who often do not feel motivated to participate in the election cycle.
Redi Lima, a sociologist working at the Institute of Social and Legal Sciences in Cape Verde, believes that part of the problem lies in the disillusionment of many young people, especially due to the lack of job opportunities and the recent rise in unemployment.
Although young Cape Verdeans often participate in rallies and even campaign for political parties, this has not been reflected in the participation of voters in recent elections.
“Young people are socialized in completely different environments,” Sanchez said. “The important thing is that these political parties can be transformed and adjusted according to current conjectures to meet the needs of the youth of the country, which constitutes an important part of the population.”
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