Presidential elections were held for the first time in São Tomé and Príncipe

São Tomé and Príncipe

São Tomé and Príncipe, officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, is a Portuguese-speaking island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western equatorial coast of Central Africa. It consists of two islands: São Tomé and Príncipe, located about apart and about , respectively, off...

 on 3 March 1991, as previously the President had been elected by the National Assembly

National Assembly of São Tomé and Príncipe

The unicameral National Assembly of São Tomé and Príncipe is the country's legislative body.The current National Assembly, formed following elections held on 26 March 2006, has a total of 55 members elected in 7 multi-member constituencies using the party-list proportional representation system...

. Ultimately only one candidate, Miguel Trovoada

Miguel Trovoada

Miguel dos Anjos da Cunha Lisboa Trovoada was Prime Minister and President of São Tomé and Príncipe. Currently he is the Executive Secretary of the Gulf of Guinea Commission.-Background:...

, ran for office, and was elected unopposed. He was sworn in as the second president of São Tomé and Príncipe on 3 April.

Candidates

Three candidates stated their intention to participate in the contest; Miguel Trovoada

Miguel Trovoada

Miguel dos Anjos da Cunha Lisboa Trovoada was Prime Minister and President of São Tomé and Príncipe. Currently he is the Executive Secretary of the Gulf of Guinea Commission.-Background:...

, a former Prime Minister running as an independent (with the support of both the PCD-GR and CODO), Monso dos Santos of the Christian Democratic Front

Christian Democratic Front

The Christian Democratic Front is a small political party in São Tomé and Príncipe. It failed to win any seats in the National Assembly following elections held on 26 March 2006....

 (FDC) and Guadalupe de Ceita, an independent candidate. Manuel Pinto da Costa

Manuel Pinto da Costa

Manuel Pinto da Costa is a Santoméan economist and politician who served as the first President of São Tomé and Príncipe from 1975 to 1991. He was again elected as President in August 2011 and took office on 3 September 2011....

, President since independence in 1975, declared that he would not be contesting the election and that he would retire from politics. The MLSTP-PSD

Movement for the Liberation of São Tomé and Príncipe

The Movement for the Liberation of São Tomé and Príncipe/Social Democratic Party or Movimento de Libertação de São Tomé e Príncipe/Partido Social Democrata, in Portuguese, is one of the main political parties in São Tomé and Príncipe...

 did not present an alternative candidate.

In February, less than a month before the election, both Monso dos Santos and Guadalupe de Ceita withdrew from the election leaving Trovoada as the sole candidate. Voter turnout was 60.0%.

Results

Candidate	Party	Votes	%
Miguel Trovoada Miguel Trovoada Miguel dos Anjos da Cunha Lisboa Trovoada was Prime Minister and President of São Tomé and Príncipe. Currently he is the Executive Secretary of the Gulf of Guinea Commission.-Background:...	Independent	26,604	100
Invalid/blank votes		5,919
Total		32,523	100
Source: Nohlen et al