President names ADI leader Américo Ramos prime minister
Carlos Vila Nova chose Ramos after the MLSTP, which won the most seats, could not show it had enough parliamentary support to govern.
President Carlos Vila Nova has appointed Américo Ramos, leader of the ADI party, as Prime Minister and Head of Government of São Tomé and Príncipe, according to Presidential Decree No. 32/2026, which the presidency made public on Thursday. The appointment followed a 24-hour deadline the president had set for ADI to name a prime minister.
The presidency said the MLSTP, the most-voted party, had not provided the elements needed for political stability and governability. ADI, which won 23 seats in the 27 September legislative elections, signed a parliamentary agreement with the MCI-PUN, led by António Monteiro and holding six seats, giving them a combined 29 deputies. The MLSTP, with 24 seats but no absolute majority, had urged the president to reject an ADI-led government.
The Movimento BASTA criticised the decision and called for a government of national unity, arguing the appointment rests only on guarantees of parliamentary support.
Why it mattersRamos now has to put a government together and win votes in a parliament where the ADI-MCI-PUN bloc holds 29 seats, and the MLSTP is contesting the result.