São Tomé and Príncipe Parliamentary election 2026 (Assembleia Nacional) — Results
- MLSTP/PSD: 37.18%
- ADI: 36.40%
- Movimento Basta: 9.34%
- MCI–PUN: 8.77%
- Nossa Terra: 3.60%
- PCD: 2.83%
- MDFM: 1.87%
Parties and coalitions admitted
- ADI — Governing party; won 30 of the 55 seats in 2022, an absolute majority
- MLSTP/PSD — Main opposition, 18 seats in 2022; backed Vila Nova's re-election in July 2026
- MCI–PS/PUN — Won 5 seats in 2022; the Constitutional Court cut its lists to three constituencies
- Movimento Basta — Entered the Assembly in 2022 with 2 seats; in opposition since
- PCD — No seats in the outgoing Assembly
- MDFM — No seats in the outgoing Assembly
- Partido Nossa Terra — Newly registered party, contesting its first legislative election
The Constitutional Court rejected the MCI–PS/PUN coalition's lists in most constituencies over falsified candidate signatures, leaving it able to stand only in Água Grande, Caué and the Autonomous Region of Príncipe. Four further parties — MIE-STP, SIM, Força Santomense and Partido Força do Povo — say they were kept off the ballot; the last two were declared dissolved by Constitutional Court ruling 8/2026 of 29 January. Local council elections and the election of Príncipe's Regional Assembly are held the same day.
Government and coalitions
In office now
The ADI has governed since 2022, when it won 30 of the National Assembly's 55 seats — 28 are needed for a majority. The remaining outgoing seats belong to the MLSTP/PSD (18), the MCI–PS/PUN coalition (5) and Movimento Basta (2). The prime minister is Américo Ramos of the ADI, appointed in January 2025 by President Carlos Vila Nova after he dismissed Patrice Trovoada's government. Vila Nova was re-elected on 19 July 2026 with MLSTP/PSD support.
Possible coalitions
The party or coalition that elects the most deputies is best placed to form a government, but it is the President who appoints the prime minister, after consulting the parties represented in the Assembly. None of the contenders has announced an alliance for after the vote. The open question is cohabitation: the President re-elected in July with MLSTP/PSD support will have to appoint the prime minister who emerges from this election, and it was his dismissal of an ADI government in January 2025 that opened the present conflict between the two offices. The MCI–PS/PUN coalition is standing in only three constituencies and cannot on its own assemble a majority.
About this election
The vote in brief
São Tomé and Príncipe is scheduled to hold parliamentary elections on 27 September 2026 to renew its 55-seat National Assembly, alongside regional and local contests. The legislative vote follows the presidential election held earlier in the year, making 2026 a decisive year for one of Africa's smallest and most stable multiparty democracies — a two-island nation in the Gulf of Guinea with an electorate of almost 150,000. The election comes against a backdrop of unusual institutional turbulence, after President Carlos Vila Nova dismissed the government of Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada in January 2025, an act Trovoada and his Independent Democratic Action (ADI) party contested as unconstitutional.
How the vote works
The National Assembly's 55 members serve four-year terms. Fifty-three are elected by closed-list proportional representation in seven multi-member constituencies based on the country's districts (six on the island of São Tomé and one for the Autonomous Region of Príncipe), and two further seats represent São Toméans living abroad, in Europe and Africa. Seats within each constituency are allocated by the highest-average (d'Hondt) method. The party or coalition that commands a majority — 28 of the 55 seats — forms the government under a prime minister, in a semi-presidential system where the president is head of state and the prime minister leads the executive and is responsible to the Assembly. This division of powers makes periods of "cohabitation" between a president and a prime minister from rival camps a recurring feature of São Toméan politics.
The party landscape
Politics is dominated by two long-established parties. The Independent Democratic Action (ADI), associated with Patrice Trovoada, has been the leading force in recent elections; the Movement for the Liberation of São Tomé and Príncipe – Social Democratic Party (MLSTP/PSD), led since September 2024 by Américo Barros, a former central bank governor who succeeded former prime minister Jorge Bom Jesus, is the historic party of independence and the ADI's main rival. Smaller parties and coalitions — including the MCI–PS/PUN coalition and the newer Basta citizens' movement — compete for the remaining seats and can hold the balance of power. The 2025 dismissal of the Trovoada government, and the appointment of Américo Ramos as prime minister without ADI's endorsement, has sharpened the rivalry and made the 2026 legislative election an unusually consequential test of which bloc will control the Assembly.
The last election (2022)
In the September 2022 election the ADI won an outright majority, returning Patrice Trovoada as prime minister for a fourth time, while the MLSTP/PSD remained the principal opposition.
| Party (2022) | Vote % | Seats |
| Independent Democratic Action (ADI) | 46.88 | 30 |
| MLSTP/PSD | 32.73 | 18 |
| Basta Movement | 8.79 | 2 |
| MCI–PS/PUN coalition | 6.47 | 5 |
Turnout was about 65.36%, with some 80,000 ballots cast from around 122,600 registered voters. International observers judged the election peaceful and free.
What to watch in 2026
The decisive questions are whether the ADI can renew its majority after the upheaval of the 2025 government dismissal, whether the MLSTP/PSD can capitalise on the crisis to return to power, and how the smaller parties and the Basta movement fare. The outcome will determine whether the next prime minister governs with or against President Vila Nova, and therefore whether São Tomé enters another period of cohabitation. Stability of governance, management of the islands' modest oil and tourism prospects, the high cost of living, and public services are the dominant campaign themes.
How the regions voted
São Tomé island, home to the great majority of the population and the capital, dominates the seat distribution, but the Autonomous Region of Príncipe — which has its own regional government and elects its own assembly — carries symbolic weight, and the two overseas constituencies for the diaspora can matter in a closely divided Assembly. ElectioMap will map results across the seven constituencies as official figures arrive.
The economy and the wider context
São Tomé and Príncipe is an upper-middle-income microstate by some measures but remains heavily dependent on foreign aid, with an economy built on cocoa exports, a growing but fragile tourism sector, fisheries, and long-held hopes of offshore oil that have yet to translate into significant production. Public debate centres on the cost of living, electricity reliability, the management of donor support from partners including Portugal and the European Union, and the islands' exposure to external shocks in food and fuel prices. The country has a strong record of peaceful, competitive elections and alternations of power since multiparty democracy was restored in 1991, which is why it is often cited as a democratic bright spot in the region — making the orderly resolution of the 2025 governmental crisis at the ballot box an important test. The European Union has fielded an election observation mission for the 2026 cycle, underlining the international interest in a credible vote.
How ElectioMap will cover it
This page will display the live national vote share and seat allocation for the 55-member National Assembly, with a constituency map, as results are released by the National Electoral Commission (CEN). Until counting begins it serves as a reference on the islands' institutions and recent political history.
Frequently asked questions
When is the 2026 São Tomé and Príncipe legislative election?
Parliamentary elections to renew the 55-seat National Assembly are scheduled for 27 September 2026, held alongside regional and local contests and following the presidential election earlier in the year.
How is the National Assembly elected?
By closed-list proportional representation: 53 of the 55 seats are filled in seven district constituencies (six on São Tomé island and one for the Autonomous Region of Príncipe), with two further seats for citizens abroad. A majority requires 28 seats, and the largest bloc forms the government under a prime minister.
Why is this election significant?
In January 2025 President Carlos Vila Nova dismissed the government of Prime Minister Patrice Trovoada (ADI), who called the move unconstitutional, and appointed Américo Ramos as prime minister. The 2026 vote will decide which bloc controls the Assembly and whether the country enters a period of cohabitation.
Which parties are the main contenders?
The Independent Democratic Action (ADI), associated with Patrice Trovoada, and the historic MLSTP/PSD, led since September 2024 by Américo Barros, are the two dominant parties. Also admitted are the Basta movement, the MCI–PS/PUN coalition — which the Constitutional Court restricted to three constituencies — the PCD, the MDFM and the newly registered Partido Nossa Terra.
When will results be available?
The National Electoral Commission announced provisional figures on 28 September 2026, the day after the vote: 47,203 valid votes, with the MLSTP/PSD on 17,551 and the ADI on 17,184 — a gap of 367 votes. The commission did not announce the seat distribution, which is for the Constitutional Court to proclaim; the Court took about a week over July's presidential election. This page carries the votes now and adds the seats once the Court publishes them.
Compiled and reviewed from official results by ElectioMap. See our data methodology.
In numbers
- 0.78 points separated MLSTP/PSD from ADI — 367 votes.
- The top two shared 73.58% of the vote between them, and 4 lists cleared 5%.
Calculated from the official figures on this page and from the other elections of this type in our archive.
Understanding this election
- How We Check an Election Figure — the checks every number passes before publication
- How Live Election Data Is Collected and Verified — from ballot box to published figure
- Why Official Results Sometimes Take Weeks — the stages between the count and the legal result