East Timor: José Ramos-Horta wins the presidential election

José Ramos-Hortas shows his finger covered in ink having voted in the second round of the presidential election on April 19, 2022. AFP - VALENTINO DARIEL SOUSA

Text by: RFI Follow

1 min

Nobel Peace Prize laureate José Ramos-Horta has won the presidential election in East Timor, according to preliminary results announced Wednesday by electoral authorities.

Mr. Ramos-Horta, who had already led the country between 2007 and 2012, obtained 62.09% of the vote in the second round against 37.91% for outgoing President Francisco "Lu Olo" Guterres.

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The Nobel Peace Prize laureate faced a former guerrilla, but it was above all two figures of the independence of East Timor who clashed in the second round of

.

The winner, José Ramos-Horta, 72, will begin his five-year term on May 20, the day of the 20th anniversary of the independence of East Timor, previously occupied by Indonesia. 

The victorious candidate has already led the country between 2007 and 2012. So here he is back in power, with the challenge of getting East Timor out of the political crisis which has paralyzed it for years against a background of face to face between the two main parties. policies. 

has also considered dissolving Parliament in order to put an end to the deadlock.

The other challenge for the president-elect is that of the economy.

In a country where more than 40% of the population lives below the poverty line and whose economy has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.

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• East Timor