At stake in this election:

• 55 seats in the National Assembly (Assembleia Nacional)

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Evaristo CARVALHO
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Patrice TRAVOADA
• Assembly: Sao Tome and Principe has a unicameral National Assembly (Assembleia Nacional) with 55 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by absolute majority vote through a two-round system to serve a 5-year term.
• The Prime Minister is elected by parliament.
• In the National Assembly (Assembleia Nacional) 55 members are elected through a closed-list proportional representation system to serve 4-year terms.***

*** There are 7 multi-member constituencies.

Main parties in the electoral race:*

• Alliance: Movement for the Liberation of Sao Tome and Principe - Social Democratic Party / Movimiento de Libertação de S. Tomé e Príncipe – Partido Social Democrata (MLSTP-PSD)
  • Leader: Aurélio Pires Quaresma MARTINS Osvaldo Vaz / Américo BARROS / Olimpia PINA
  • Seats won in last election: 16
• Party: Independent Democratic Action / Acção Democrática Independente (ADI)
  • Leader: Patrice Emery TROVOADA
  • Seats won in last election: 33
• Alliance: Democratic Convergence Party – Force for Change Democratic Movement – Party of the Democratic Union for Citizenship and Development / Partido de Convergência Democrática (PCD) – Partido da União Democrática para o Cidadania e Desenvolvimento – Movimento Democrático Força de Mudança (PCD / MDFM-UDD)
  • Leaders: José Luiz Xavier MENDES, Manuel dos Santos Diogo Coelho do Nascimento, Fradique Melo Bandera DE MENEZES
  • Seats won in last election: N/A
• Alliance: Sao Tome and Principe Independent Citizen Movement Party / Mouvement citoyen indépendant de Sao Tomé-et-Principe (MCISTP)
  • Seats won in last election: 0

* There are 15 parties and alliances in this election.

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 208,818 (2018 est.)
• Registered Voters: 86,986 (2018)

Gender Data:

• Female Population:  104,821 (2018 est.)
• Is São Tomé a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (31 October 1995)
• Has São Tomé ratified CEDAW: Yes (3 June 2003)
• Gender Quota: No
• Female candidates in this election:
• Number of Female Parliamentarians: 10 (2018)
• Human Development Index Position: 142 (2016)
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A

Disability Data:

• Is São Tomé and Príncipe a signatory to CRPD: No
• Has São Tomé and Príncipe ratified CRPD: Yes, accession (5 November 2015)
• Population with a disability: 29,101 (2018 est.)