Guinea-Bissau – Presidential candidates

PANA is reporting that 15 people have registered as candidates for the upcoming presidential election in Guinea-Bissau. The eligibility of the candidatures is now being reviewed by the Supreme Court, which will determine their eligibility.

The election will be held on 28 June and follows the assassination of President Vieira in March.

The candidate for the main party, the PAIGC, is former interim president (after the 1999 coup), Malan Bacai Sanhá. He stood at both the 2000 and 2004 presidential election. In 2004 he was only narrowly defeated by Nino Vieira. This time he is the clear favourite, though he may not win at the first ballot.

The other most well-known candidate is former president Kumba Ialá. He was elected in 2000 against Malan Bacai Sanhá. However, Ialá’s presidency was a disaster. His party, the PRS, did not have a majority and the coalition government broke down after less than a year. The president acted increasingly autocratically and was subject to a coup in 2003. His party performed poorly in the November 2008 legislative election.

Other candidates include the independent, Henrique Pereira Rosa, who was interim president for more than two years from 2003-2005; former prime minister Aristides Gomes, who was close to Nino Vieira (a PAIGC dissident); and another former prime minister, Francisco Fadul.

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