Chamber:
	Assembleia Nacional
Dates of elections / renewal (from/to):
	13 January 1991
Purpose of elections:
	Elections were held for all the seats in Parliament on the normal expiry of the members’ term of office.
Background and outcome of elections:
	The 1991 general elections were the first multiparty ones since independence in 1975. Their road was paved by constitutional reforms and new electoral legislation approved in September 1990. Legislative polling was to be followed one month later by that for President of the Republic, with the winner in the latter contest to appoint the Government on the basis of the parliamentary results. The ruling African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV) was challenged mainly by the newly formed Movement for Democracy (MDP) group headed by Mr. Carlos Veiga. The latter advocated administrative decentralization. Economic issues (especially the country’s high unemployment rate) also figured in the campaign debate. Polling day was marked by a heavy voter turnout. The MDP recorded a solid victory (56 of 79 Assembly seats), thus terminating 15 years of single-party rule. On 28 January, Mr. Veiga was appointed Prime Minister in a transitional administration. On 17 February, the incumbent President, Mr. Aristides Maria Pereira, was convincingly defeated by the MPD candidate, Mr. Antonio Manuel Mascarenhas Monteiro.

STATISTICS

Round no 1 (13 January 1991): Elections results
Number of registered electors	166,818
Voters	125,654 (75.27%)
Blank or invalid ballot papers	7,437
Valid votes	118,127

Round no 1: Distribution of votes
Political Group	%
Movement for Democracy (MPD)	62
African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV)	32

Round no 1: Distribution of seats
Political Group	Total
Movement for Democracy (MPD)	56
African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV)	23

Distribution of seats according to sex:
Men:	73
Women:	6