Madar (Praia) - Campaigning for Cape Verde's presidential election kicked off on Saturday, October 31, 2026, with President Jose Maria Neves holding a rally of hundreds of supporters on the island of Sao Vicente, Africanews reported on Sunday, November 1, 2026.
Neves is seeking a second term in the November 15 vote, backed by the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV), which won a majority in May's legislative elections.
"It is essential that we begin working to increase salary levels in Cape Verde. No country grows or competes on the basis of low wages," Neves told the rally, adding that improving wages and household income requires a set of important reforms.
Six candidates are running for the presidency, and campaigning officially ends on November 13, according to the National Elections Commission. Neves' chief rival is expected to be former justice minister Joana Rosa, backed by the Movement for Democracy (MpD).
The Atlantic archipelago of about 520,000 people lies some 600 kilometres off the African coast and was a Portuguese colony until 1975. Seen as a model of democracy in Africa, it has had no electoral violence since its first free elections in 1991, despite two periods of cohabitation, but faces significant social challenges, including poverty and youth unemployment.
