General Information
At Stake in this Election:
- The office of President of Guinea-Bissau.
Government Structure:
- Chief of State: President Jose Mario VAZ
- Head of Government: The office of the Prime Minister if currently vacant.*
- Assembly: Guinea-Bissau has a unicameral People's National Assembly (Assembleia Nacional Popular) with 102 seats.
* On Tuesday October 29, 2019, Guinea-Bissau President Jose Mario VAZ dismissed former Prime Minister Prime Minister Aristides GOMES and named a replacement from a minority political party.[1] GOMES refused to step down, intensifying a bitter power struggle between VAZ and the ruling party weeks ahead of a presidential election[2].
Electoral System:
- In the People's National Assembly (Assembleia Nacional Popular) 102 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system to serve 4-year terms.
Main Candidates in this Election:
- Candidate: Jose Mario VAZ
- Party: Independent
- Candidate: Domingos Simoes PEREIRA
- Party: African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC)
- Candidate: Umaro Sissoko EMBALO
- Party: Movement for a Democratic Alternative (Madem G-15)
- Candidate: Nuno Gomes Na BIAM
- Party: United People's Assembly - Guinea-Bissau Democratic Party
- Candidate: Carlos GOMES Jr.
- Party: Independent
Population and Registered Voters:
Gender Data:
- Female Population: 982,000[5]
- Is Guinea-Bissau a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980)[6]
- Has Guinea-Bissau ratified CEDAW: Yes (23 August 1985)[7]
- Gender Quota: No
- Female Candidates in this election:
- Number of Female Legislators: 14 (13.7%)[8]
- Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 177[9]
- Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A
Disability Data:
- Is Guinea-Bissau a signatory to CRPD: Yes (24 September 2013)[10]
- Has Guinea-Bissau ratified CRPD: Yes (24 September 2014)[11]
- Population with a disability: 258, 926 (2019 est.)[12]
[1] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-bissau-politics/guinea-bissau-president-names-new-prime-minister-but-old-one-refuses-to-go-idUSKBN1X822R
[2] https://www.voanews.com/africa/un-security-council-issues-call-stability-elections-guinea-bissau
[5] Ibid.
[7] Ibid.
[11] Ibid.