Guinea-Bissau general election, 2014

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Guinea-Bissau general election, 2014
Flag of Guinea-Bissau.svg
  2012 13 April 2014 (first round)
18 May 2014 (second round)

  Jose Mario Vaz 2014.jpg No image.png
Nominee José Mário Vaz Nuno Gomes Nabiam
Party PAIGC Independent
Popular vote 364,394 224,089
Percentage 61.92% 38.08%
Coat of arms of Guinea-Bissau.svg
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Guinea-Bissau

General elections were held in Guinea-Bissau on 13 April 2014, with a second round for the presidential elections held on 18 May since no candidate received a majority in the first round. Several logistic problems and delays caused the elections to be repeatedly postponed, having initially been scheduled for 24 November 2013 and then 16 March 2014. [1] In the second round, José Mário Vaz was declared the president-elect with 62% of the vote. [2]

Guinea-Bissau country in Western Africa

Guinea-Bissau, officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, is a country in West Africa that covers 36,125 square kilometres (13,948 sq mi) with an estimated population of 1,815,698.

José Mário Vaz Guinean politician

José Mário Gómes Vaz is the President of Guinea-Bissau, in office since 23 June 2014.

Contents

Background

The elections were the result of a military coup in 2012 cancelling the elections that year. [3] On 26 February 2014, the UN Security Council urged Guinea-Bissau's transitional government to abide by announced election plans, warning of sanctions against those opposing a return to constitutional order.

2012 Guinea-Bissau coup détat coup détat

On 12 April 2012, a coup d'état in Guinea-Bissau was staged by elements of the armed forces about two weeks before the second round of a presidential election between Carlos Gomes Júnior and Kumba Ialá. The coup started in the evening with military personnel and equipment making its way onto the streets, followed by the state-owned media being taken off-air.

Former President Kumba Ialá died a few weeks before the elections. [4]

Kumba Ialá Guinea-Bissau politician

Kumba Ialá Embaló, also spelled Yalá, was a Bissau-Guinean politician who was president from 17 February 2000 until he was deposed in a bloodless military coup on 14 September 2003. He belonged to the Balanta ethnic group and was President of the Social Renewal Party (PRS). In 2008 he converted to Islam and took the name Mohamed Ialá Embaló. He was the founder of the Party for Social Renewal. In 2014, Ialá died from a cardiopulmonary arrest.

Electoral system

The President will be elected using the two-round system, whilst the 102 members of the National People's Assembly were elected using proportional representation from 27 multi-member constituencies. [5] Article 33 of Guinea-Bissau's Electoral Law prohibits the publishing of any opinion polls. [6]

Two-round system voting system used to elect a single winner where a second round of voting is used if no candidate wins an absolute majority in the first round

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.

National Peoples Assembly (Guinea-Bissau) parliament of Guinea-Bissau

The unicameral National People's Assembly is Guinea-Bissau's legislative body.

Proportional representation (PR) characterizes electoral systems in which divisions in an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. If n% of the electorate support a particular political party, then roughly n% of seats will be won by that party. The essence of such systems is that all votes contribute to the result - not just a plurality, or a bare majority. The most prevalent forms of proportional representation all require the use of multiple-member voting districts, as it is not possible to fill a single seat in a proportional manner. In fact, the implementations of PR that achieve the highest levels of proportionality tend to include districts with large numbers of seats.

Candidates and parties

Thirteen presidential candidates were confirmed by the High Court of Justice, [7] whilst eight candidates were rejected. [8]

The Court approved fifteen parties to contest the National People's Assembly election, but rejected applications from seven other parties; the National African Congress, the Guinean Civic Forum-Social Democracy, the Democratic Party for Development, the Guinean Democratic Movement, the Patriotic Movement, the Guinean League for Ecological Protection and the Party for Democracy, Development and Citizenship. [8]

Guinean Democratic Movement

The Guinean Democratic Movement is a political party in Guinea-Bissau.

Guinean League for Ecological Protection

The Guinean League for Ecological Protection is a political party in Guinea-Bissau.

Results

President

CandidatePartyFirst roundSecond round
Votes%Votes%
José Mário Vaz PAIGC 257,57240.89364,39461.92
Nuno Gomes Nabiam Independent156,16324.79224,08938.08
Paulo GomesIndependent65,49010.40
Abel Incanda Party for Social Renewal 43,8906.97
Mamadú Iaia Djaló New Democracy Party 28,5354.53
Ibraima Sory DjalóNational Reconciliation Party19,4973.10
Antonio Afonso Té Republican Party for Independence and Development 18,8082.99
Helder Vaz LopesIndependent8,8881.41
Domingos QuadéIndependent8,6071.37
Aregado Mantenque Té Workers' Party 7,2691.15
Luis NancassaIndependent7,0121.11
Jorge MalúIndependent6,1250.97
Cirilo Rodrigues de Oliveira Socialist Party 2,0700.33
Invalid/blank votes62,51418,053
Total692,440100606,536100
Registered voters/turnout775,50889.29775,50878.21
Source: CNE, CNE

National People's Assembly

PartyVotes%Seats+/–
PAIGC 281,40847.9857–10
Party for Social Renewal 180,43230.7641+13
New Democracy Party 28,5814.8710
Democratic Convergence Party 19,7573.372+1
Republican Party for Independence and Development 17,9193.060–3
Union for Change 10,8031.841+1
Guinean Patriotic Union10,9191.8600
Resistance of Guinea-Bissau-Bafatá Movement 9,5021.620New
National Reconciliation Party7,9031.3500
Manifest Party of the People 4,1010.700New
United Social Democratic Party 4,0480.6900
Workers' Party 3,6590.6200
Socialist Party 3,4800.5900
Social Democratic Party 2,3020.3900
Democratic Social Front 1,7100.2900
Invalid/blank votes100,352
Total686,876100102+2
Registered voters/turnout775,50888.57
Source: CNE (seats), CNE (votes)

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