Cape Verde: Opposition Candidate Leads in Polls

The initial results of Cape Verde’s presidential elections are showing a sizable lead for the official opposition choice, Jose Maria Neves.

Citizens of the archipelago country took to the voting polls on Sunday, 17 October, to choose a new leader. According to local authorities, the voter turnout was approximately 48.3%, or nearly 460 000, including those residing overseas.

Incumbent Jorge Carlo Fonseca has reached the end of the country’s two-term limit, leaving the people with a choice between two prime ministers: Neves of the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV) or Carlos Veiga, the leader of Movement for Democracy (MpD), which has a parliamentary majority.

Official figures indicate that about 51.46% of the vote has gone to the PAICV, while MpD has managed to secure 42.59%. With more than half the vote, the PAICV’s numbers have been confirmed to be enough to prevent a run-off vote and declare Neves the winner.

Per reports, Veiga has already acknowledged the win and congratulated his opponent on television.

Citizens of Cape Verde are hoping that the incoming presidential candidate will make good on his promises to lift an economy that shrunk by 14%, due to closing borders in response to the coronavirus pandemic – a crippling move for a country so reliant on tourism.

Image Credit: Source