Guinea-Bissau’s main opposition coalition and historical PAIGC party will be absent from November’s presidential and legislative ballots. The Supreme Court published a final list of parties Friday, confirming earlier provisional decisions citing late submissions for candidacy.
Former Prime Minister Domingos Simoes Pereira submitted his presidential bid too late, after failing to correctly register his coalition initially. Pereira leads Pai Terra Ranka, a coalition of roughly ten parties, including PAIGC, which historically led the country to independence.
In late September, the Supreme Court had already declared Pai Terra Ranka ineligible for legislative elections due to the late application. PAIGC, meanwhile, did not submit any legislative application, according to Supreme Court spokesman Mamadu Embalo, cementing its absence from the vote.
Pereira returned to Guinea-Bissau in mid-September after nine months abroad, citing threats to his life and unresolved legal issues. Before returning, he told supporters in Portugal he would lead a “democratic fight” against the current administration’s perceived authoritarianism.
Incumbent President Umaro Sissoco Embalo is registered for re-election, facing Pereira, who contested his defeat in the 2019 presidential vote. In 2023, Embalo dissolved parliament, then dominated by the opposition, following armed clashes he labelled an attempted coup.
Pereira condemned the dissolution as a constitutional coup while serving as parliament speaker, escalating political tensions in the country. Guinea-Bissau, among the world’s poorest nations, has suffered recurring coups and corruption since its independence from Portugal in 1974.