Cape Verde to vote as Neves seeks second presidential term

Cape Verde will hold a presidential election on November 15, with incumbent Jose Maria Neves seeking a second term as head of state against five challengers.

The main contest is between Neves, 66, and Joana Rosa Amado, 61, a lawyer and former justice minister who is Cape Verde's first woman presidential candidate. Neves is backed by the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde, which won legislative elections in May. Amado is supported by the opposition Movement for Democracy.

Cape Verde has a semi-presidential system in which the prime minister dominates the executive. The president acts mainly as an arbiter, represents the country abroad, guarantees unity and upholds the constitution.

Neves was first elected president in 2021 and previously served as prime minister from 2001 to 2016. Amado has said electing a woman would show young women and girls that no government job is barred to them.

The campaign has focused on jobs, the cost of living, fuel prices and transport between the islands. Cape Verde was classified by the World Bank in July 2026 as an upper-middle income country after growth in tourism and a 16.8 percent rise in gross national income per capita between 2023 and 2024, but it still faces social inequality, geographic isolation and youth unemployment.