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This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Timor-Leste |
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Constitution |
Legislature |
Judiciary
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Presidential elections were held in East Timor on 20 March 2017. Incumbent President Taur Matan Ruak, who was eligible for a second term, chose not to run for re-election. [1] The result was a victory for Francisco Guterres of FRETILIN. [2]
East Timor or Timor-Leste, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Maritime Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco, and Oecusse, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island surrounded by Indonesian West Timor. Australia is the country's southern neighbour, separated by the Timor Sea. The country's size is about 15,410 km2.
José Maria VasconcelosGColIH, popularly known by his nom de guerreTaur Matan Ruak is an East Timorese politician who has served as the Prime Minister of East Timor since 22 June 2018. He was also President of East Timor from 20 May 2012 to 20 May 2017. Before entering politics, he was the Commander of the FALINTIL-Forças de Defesa de Timor-Leste (F-FDTL), the military of East Timor, from 2002 until 6 October 2011. Prior to serving in the F-FDTL, he was the last commander of the Armed Forces of National Liberation of East Timor or FALINTIL, the insurgent army which resisted the Indonesian occupation of the territory from 1975 to 1999.
Francisco Guterres, popularly known as Lú-Olo, is an East Timorese politician who has been President of East Timor since 2017. He is also the President of Fretilin, and he was President of the National Parliament of East Timor from 2002 to 2007. As the Fretilin candidate, he stood in the 2007 presidential election and 2012 presidential election, but was defeated in the second round by independent candidates on both occasions. He also contested the 2017 presidential election, and with the support of former Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão and his party, National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT), he was elected as President.
The President of East Timor is elected using the two-round system. [3] If it had been required, a second round would have been held on 20 April. [1]
The President of East Timor – officially the President of the Democratic Republic of East Timor – is the head of state in East Timor, elected by popular vote for a five-year term. Their executive powers are somewhat limited, though he or she is able to veto legislation. Following elections, the president usually appoints as the prime minister, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition. As head of government the prime minister presides over the cabinet.
The two-round system is a voting method used to elect a single winner, where the voter casts a single vote for their chosen candidate. However, if no candidate receives the required number of votes, then those candidates having less than a certain proportion of the votes, or all but the two candidates receiving the most votes, are eliminated, and a second round of voting is held.
The Democratic Party or the Democratic Party in Timor-Leste is a centre-left political party in East Timor, established on 10 June, 2001. Currently, most of the members of the party are of the young generation who are studying abroad, and those who have completed their studies in Indonesia, Norway, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand and the United States.
José Luís Guterres is an East Timorese politician and diplomat.
Frente de Reconstrução Nacional de Timor-Leste - Mudança, commonly known as Frenti-Mudança, is a political party in East Timor led by Vice-Prime minister José Luís Guterres.
Candidate | Party | Votes | % |
---|---|---|---|
Francisco Guterres | FRETILIN | 295,048 | 57.1 |
António da Conceição | Democratic Party | 167,794 | 32.5 |
José Luís Guterres | Frenti-Mudança | 13,513 | 2.6 |
José Neves | Independent | 11,663 | 2.3 |
Luís Alves Tilman | Independent | 11,125 | 2.2 |
Antonio Maher Lopes | Socialist Party of Timor | 9,102 | 1.8 |
Ángela Freitas | Timorese Workers' Party | 4,353 | 0.8 |
Amorim Vieira | Independent | 4,283 | 0.8 |
Invalid/blank votes | 11,932 | – | |
Total | 528,813 | 100 | |
Registered voters/turnout | 743,150 | 71.2 | |
Source: CNE |
José Manuel Ramos-Horta is an East Timorese politician who was the President of East Timor from 20 May 2007 to 20 May 2012. Previously he was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2002 to 2006 and Prime Minister from 2006 to 2007. He is a co-recipient of the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize along with Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo, for working "towards a just and peaceful solution to the conflict in East Timor".
Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, GColIH, GCL, GCMG is an East Timorese politician. A former militant, he was the first President of East Timor, serving from May 2002 to May 2007. He then became the fourth Prime Minister of East Timor, serving from 8 August 2007 to 16 February 2015. He has been Minister of Planning and Strategic Investment since February 2015.
Politics in Portugal takes place in a framework of a unitary semi-presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Portugal is the head of government. Portugal has a multi-party system. The President of Portugal is the executive head of state and has several significant political powers, which he exercises often. Executive power is exercised by the President and the Council of Ministers. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Assembly of the Republic. The Judiciary of Portugal is independent of the executive and the legislature.
Politics of East Timor takes place in a framework of a unitary semi-presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of East Timor is the head of government and the President of East Timor exercises the functions of head of state. East Timor has a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the president and the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the National Parliament. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The East Timorese constitution was modelled on that of Portugal, though the president is less powerful than their Portuguese counterpart. The country is still in the process of building its administration and governmental institutions. The Economist Intelligence Unit has rated East Timor as "flawed democracy" in 2016.
The Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor is a leftist political party in East Timor. They presently hold 23 of 65 seats in the National Parliament and serve in the opposition. Fretilin formed the government in East Timor from independence until 2007. The party began as a resistance movement that fought for the independence of East Timor, first from Portugal and then from Indonesia, between 1974 and 1998. After East Timor gained its independence from Indonesia, Fretilin became one of several parties competing for power in a multi-party system.
Mari bin Amude Alkatiri, GCIH is a Timorese politician. He was Prime Minister of East Timor from May 2002 until his resignation on 26 June 2006 following weeks of political unrest in the country, and again from September 2017 until May 2018. He is the Secretary-General of the Fretilin party, as well as President of the Special Administrative Region of Oecusse.
Francisco Xavier do Amaral was an East Timorese politician. A founder of the Frente Revolucionaria de Timor Leste Independente (Fretilin), Amaral was sworn in as the first President of East Timor when the country, then a Portuguese colony, made a unilateral declaration of independence on 28 November 1975. He was a member of the National Parliament for the Timorese Social Democratic Association from 2001 until his death. Amaral was also known as "Abo (Grandfather) Xavier," a term of endearment, by East Timorese.
The Timorese Social Democratic Association is a political party in East Timor.
The Timorese Democratic Union is a conservative political party in East Timor. It was the first party to be established in the country on May 11, 1974, following the Carnation Revolution in Portugal.
Presidential elections were held in East Timor in 2007. The first round on 9 April 2007 saw six of the eight candidates eliminated. The remaining two candidates, incumbent Prime Minister José Ramos-Horta and FRETILIN President Francisco Guterres, faced each other in a runoff election on 9 May 2007. Ramos-Horta won the second round with 69% of the vote.
Estanislau da Conceição Aleixo Maria da Silva is an East Timorese politician and a key member of the Fretilin. He was acting Prime Minister from May 2007 to August 2007.
A parliamentary election was held in East Timor on 30 June 2007. Although a narrow plurality was achieved by the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (FRETILIN), a coalition involving the next three largest groups formed a government. New Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão of the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT) was sworn in on 8 August 2007; Fernando de Araújo of the Democratic Party became President of the National Parliament.
The National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction is a political party in East Timor founded by former President Xanana Gusmão in March 2007 in preparation for the 2007 parliamentary election.
Fernando de Araújo, also known as Lasama was an East Timorese politician who was President of the National Parliament of East Timor from 2007 to 2012. He also served as the Acting President for two months in early 2008. He was also the President of the Democratic Party.
A presidential election was held in Timor-Leste on 17 March and 16 April 2012 to choose a president for a five-year term. Incumbent president Jose Ramos-Horta, who was eligible for a second and final term as president, announced that he would seek nomination to be a candidate in the election. The election was seen as a test for the "young democracy" in seeking to take control of its own security. Former military commander Taur Matan Ruak provisionally beat Francisco Guterres in a second round runoff.
Early parliamentary elections were held in East Timor on 12 May 2018 after the National Parliament was dissolved by President Francisco Guterres on 26 January 2018.