2012 East Timorese presidential election

none October 2015 October 2020 East Timor presidential 2007 East Timorese presidential election 2007 2017 East Timorese presidential election 2017 17 March 2012 (first round)16 April 2012 (second round) 2013 Taur Matan Ruak.jpg Taur Matan Ruak Independent politician 275,471 61.23% Francisco 'Lu Olo' Guterres 2012 infobox crop.jpg Francisco Guterres Fretilin 174,408 38.77% 275px First round results by district 275px Second round results by district 2 President José Ramos-Horta Independent politician Taur Matan Ruak Independent politician Presidential elections were held in East Timor on 17 March 2012, with a second round on 16 April.http://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-actu/2012/03/19/97001-20120319FILWWW00326-l-onu-salue-l-election-au-timor-leste.php L'ONU salue l'élection au Timor-Leste Le Figaro 19 March 2012 French 19 April 2012 Incumbent president José Ramos-Horta, who was eligible for a second and final term as president, announced that he would seek nomination to be a candidate in the election.http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/international/east-timors-ramos-horta-to-seek-second-term/494826 https://archive.today/20120914003952/http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/international/east-timors-ramos-horta-to-seek-second-term/494826 dead 14 September 2012 East Timor's Ramos-Horta to Seek Second Term 31 January 2012 Jakarta Globe Agence France-Presse 19 April 2012 The election was seen as a test for the "young democracy" in seeking to take control of its own security.http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-03-17/polls-close-in-east-timor-presidential-election/3896052?site=sydney Polls close in East Timor presidential election Australian Broadcasting Corporation 17 March 2012 16 April 2012 Former military commander Taur Matan Ruak provisionally beat Francisco Guterres in a second round runoff. Background The presidency is seen as a unifying post for the country after the 1999 East Timorese crisis. This election is also seen as a test FRETILIN's ability to take back control in the parliamentary election later in the year. Incumbent president José Ramos-Horta had initially been reluctant to run for re-election, but a draft movement collected over 120,000 signatures in favour of his candidacy, prompting him to run.Kommentar posten http://derstandard.at/1326504160304/Praesident-Ramos-Horta-tritt-im-Maerz-erneut-zur-Wahl-an Präsident Ramos-Horta tritt im März erneut zur Wahl an - Osttimor Derstandard.at 31 January 2012 German 16 April 2012 Candidates There were finally twelve candidates running for president; two others eventually were excluded, one failing to meet the nomination requirements and another dying at the start of the election. Abílio Araújohttp://www.stae.tl/download/No_Candidatura.pdf Tribunal de Recurso Portuguese National Election Commission 19 April 2012 April 2019 InternetArchiveBot yes Fernando de Araújo, speaker of the National Parliament of East Timor,http://www.smh.com.au/world/president-vulnerable-as-east-timor-goes-to-polls-20120316-1vaoc.html President vulnerable as East Timor goes to polls The Sydney Morning Herald Michael Bachelard Bachelard Michael 17 March 2012 16 April 2012 president of the Democratic Party Maria do Céuhttp://cjitlnoticias.sapo.tl/nasional/lista-tribunal-rekursu-konaba--142281 Centru Jornalista Investigativo Timor Leste Cjitlnoticias.sapo.tl 19 April 2012 10 May 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20120510223025/http://cjitlnoticias.sapo.tl/nasional/lista-tribunal-rekursu-konaba--142281 dead Lucas da Costahttp://cjitlnoticias.sapo.tl/nasional/lucas-da-costa-deklara-kandida-134960 Centru Jornalista Investigativo Timor Leste Cjitlnoticias.sapo.tl 19 April 2012 18 May 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150518155043/http://cjitlnoticias.sapo.tl/nasional/lucas-da-costa-deklara-kandida-134960 dead Francisco Gomeshttp://cjitl.org/eleisaun-2012/notisia/517 Archived copy 17 March 2012 17 April 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250417180638/https://cjitl.org/eleisaun-2012/notisia/517 dead Francisco Guterres, FRETILIN José Luís Guterres, vice prime minister, member of the Frente-Mudança José Ramos-Horta, incumbent president Rogério LobatoPeake Gordon http://www.lowyinterpreter.org/post/2012/02/15/Rogerio-Lobato-From-inmate-to-president.aspx Rogerio Lobato: From inmate to president? Lowyinterpreter.org 19 April 2012 12 April 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160412221331/http://www.lowyinterpreter.org/post/2012/02/15/Rogerio-Lobato-From-inmate-to-president.aspx dead Angelita Pireshttp://www.smh.com.au/world/australian-acquitted-of-plot-to-kill-wants-timors-top-job-20110609-1fv13.html Australian acquitted of plot to kill wants Timor's top job Lindsay Murdoch The Sydney Morning Herald 10 June 2011 19 April 2012 Taur Matan Ruak, also known as TMR, former commander of the FALINTIL-Forças de Defesa de Timor-Leste (F-FDTL), the Military of East Timor.http://www.abola.pt/mundos/ver.aspx?id=292105 Taur Matan Ruak é candidato às próximas presidenciais Portuguese 10 October 2011 Abola.pt 19 April 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20111011112833/http://www.abola.pt/mundos/ver.aspx?id=292105 11 October 2011 dead He is an independent candidate, but supported by East Timor's second biggest party, the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction, (CNRT) and its leader, Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão.http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2012/03/201231724858150278.html Polls close in East Timor presidential vote - Asia-Pacific Al Jazeera English 17 March 2012 16 April 2012 Manuel Tilman The candidacy of Angela Freitas,https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/world/doctor-offers-antidote-to-east-timors-ills/news-story/cbcb65eca7e48afb6455c1bf55994339 Doctor offers antidote to East Timor's ills Ted McDonell 16 January 2012 The Australian 2012-01-15 https://web.archive.org/web/20120115191211/http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/doctor-offers-antidote-to-east-timors-ills/story-e6frg6so-1226244844619 subscription live 19 April 2012 was rejected by the CNE due to the ineligibility of some of the signatures required.http://www.cjitl.org/cjitltimor-today/cjitl-gender/924 Angela: Rejected Presidential candidate predicts more violence in East Timor Cjitl.org 20 February 2012 16 April 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20120225022248/http://www.cjitl.org/cjitltimor-today/cjitl-gender/924 25 February 2012 deadhttp://cjitl.org/cjitltimor-today/cjitl-breaking-news/944 Angela: I may have lost this battle but the "War" is far from over Cjitl.org 23 February 2012 16 April 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20120224192937/http://www.cjitl.org/cjitltimor-today/cjitl-breaking-news/944 24 February 2012 dead She then offered her support to FRETILIN'sMcDonnell Ted http://www.demotix.com/news/1096151/unity-east-timor-presidential-race Unity in East Timor Presidential race Demotix.com 16 April 2012 April 2019 InternetArchiveBot yes Francisco Guterres. One candidate Francisco Xavier do Amaral, a member of the National Parliament of East Timor and a leader of Timorese Social Democratic Association, died during the campaign, on 5 March 2012.Peter Alford Resistance-era president of East Timor, Francisco Xavier do Amaral, dies in Dili, aged 74 https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/resistance-era-president-of-east-timor-francisco-xavier-do-amaral-dies-in-dili-aged-74/news-story/b4919e82ccf1f3ac568f494006f6a27c The Australian 17 March 2012 2012-03-07 https://web.archive.org/web/20120307060033/http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/resistance-era-president-of-east-timor-francisco-xavier-do-amaral-dies-in-dili-aged-74/story-e6frg6so-1226291130113 subscription live 6 April 2012 A special plenary session of parliament amended the electoral so as not to restart the electoral processhttps://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/resistance-era-president-of-east-timor-francisco-xavier-do-amaral-dies-in-dili-aged-74/news-story/b4919e82ccf1f3ac568f494006f6a27c Resistance-era president of East Timor, Francisco Xavier do Amaral, dies in Dili, aged 74 Peter Alford 7 March 2012 The Australian 2012-03-07 https://web.archive.org/web/20120307060033/http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/resistance-era-president-of-east-timor-francisco-xavier-do-amaral-dies-in-dili-aged-74/story-e6frg6so-1226291130113 subscription live 19 April 2012 as mandated by the older law. The controversial move elicited protests.March 2012 Campaign Economic issues were said to be the primary concern. According to the AFP, the most likely candidates were José Ramos-Horta, Francisco "Lu Olo" Guterres and Taur Matan Ruak. Ruak also said that he was confident of winning without a run-off. He won the backing of CNRT after it withdrew support for Ramos-Horta over criticism of the government; still, Ramos-Horta said he was not unhappy with the decision to support Ruak: "I'm very happy he's supporting one of my favourite candidates. If someone supports [Ruak] I'm happy because I admire [him]."https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hbbLpk49MI7q4i8WAwos_zZj4LtA?docId=CNG.527f1a997d82d05d300c1ca083806053.141 https://archive.today/20130124161808/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hbbLpk49MI7q4i8WAwos_zZj4LtA?docId=CNG.527f1a997d82d05d300c1ca083806053.141 dead 24 January 2013 AFP: East Timor votes in test for young nation 16 March 2012 16 April 2012 Ruak was seen as likely to get some votes from FRETILIN's traditional base as he was popular with the party and repeatedly courted by the party hierarchy before opting to run as an independent after he quit his army post. However, there were also concerns of having someone affiliated to the army run for president because the army has sometimes disagreed with the police. Ruak campaigned wearing camouflage to highlight his role in the War of Independence. Ramos-Horta said before the election that "If I'm not elected, I have so many things to do - I have to struggle to choose what to do." Xanana Gusmão campaigned for Ruak. Both Guitteres and Ruak said that they would abide by the outcome of the second round of the election. Ruak also said that he was proud to be Gusmão's deputy during the independence struggle. In the second round the Democratic Party and Ramos-Horta remained neutral.Kingsbury, Damien http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/timor-election-a-key-test-of-stability-20120417-1x52p.html Timor election a key test of stability 17 April 2012 National Times, SMH.com.au 19 April 2012 Monitors and electoral issues International observers were present from Australia, the European Union, Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) and Lusophone states. On 2 March, the CNE held a meeting, led by its president, Faustino Cardoso Gomes, with an EU delegation based in the country to discuss issues pertaining to the election and its monitoring.http://www.cne.tl/index.php/main/index/en/information/news_meeting_eu.php Meeting with the European Union about electoral situation National Electoral Commission 2 March 2012 16 April 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20161003201606/http://www.cne.tl/index.php/main/index/en/information/news_meeting_eu.php 3 October 2016 dead The Timor-Leste Friendship Network/Deakin University Observer Mission was an Australian observer group. On 28 February, the National Electoral Commission (CNE) had organised a national initiative for the conduct of a peaceful election at the Dili Convention Centre. It was attended by traditional leaders from the 13 electoral districts and culminated in a pact being signed after a debate by the then 12 of 13 candidates (Francisco Xavier do Amaral did not attend the event due to ill health).http://www.cne.tl/index.php/main/index/en/information/news_national_pact.php https://archive.today/20120722090919/http://www.cne.tl/index.php/main/index/en/information/news_national_pact.php dead 22 July 2012 National Pact for Peaceful Elections 2012 National Electoral Commission 28 February 2012 16 April 2012 On 5 March, the CNE held a meeting with the political parties and presidential candidates to explain issues and rules about the campaigning process, the roles of political parties' and candidates' agents and campaign finance issues. The president of state-owned Radio-Televisão Timor Leste (RTTL) Expedito also elucidated RTTL's role in covering the election. Amongst the attendees were representatives of all 13 political parties and six presidential candidates.http://www.cne.tl/index.php/main/index/en/information/news_meetings_pp4th.php https://archive.today/20120801143951/http://www.cne.tl/index.php/main/index/en/information/news_meetings_pp4th.php dead 1 August 2012 CNE's 4th meeting with the political parties and candidates National Electoral Commission 5 March 2012 16 April 2012 The Deputy Secretary-General of UNMIT, Finn Reske-Nielson, said of the election that "we have seen a clean campaign that's been virtually free of violence. Every candidate has committed him or herself to peace."http://www.irinnews.org/Report/95079/TIMOR-LESTE-High-hopes-for-post-election-prosperity TIMOR-LESTE: High hopes for post-election prosperity IRIN 16 March 2012 16 April 2012 If the election turned out as planned UNMIT could also leave the country at the end of the year as per its current mandate.http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/asia-pacific/120316/east-timor-elections-martial-arts-groups East Timor elections: what's at stake Kate Lamb GlobalPost 16 March 2012 16 April 2012 Violence On 20 February, the offices of the CNE and the Technical Secretariat for Electoral Administration were firebombed at about 3:00 in the national capital of Dili. The attack also damaged a UNMIT vehicle.http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/arson-attack-on-east-timor-election-office-20120223-1tpn6.html Arson attack on East Timor election office The Sydney Morning Herald Karlis Salna 23 February 2012 16 April 2012 Australia's Sky News also suggested that witnesses had reported seeing serving members of the military campaign for Ruak amid what it said were fears of voter intimidation. However, Ramos-Horta said that he is "completely reassured about security. Our police and the United Nations police are alert all over the country. They have tremendous experience over the years in assessing the situation, in pre-empting any security threats so I am very confident it will be okay."http://www.skynews.com.au/topstories/article.aspx?id=726372&vId= Reports of voter intimidation in E Timor Sky News 7 March 2012 16 April 2012 However, Indonesia's ambassador, Eddy Setyabudi, said that the government of Indonesia was making contingency plans to evacuate 7,540 Indonesians from the country if the situation worsens and riots occur, following a meeting of the Indonesian-East Timor Border Coordination committee.http://www.tempo.co.id/hg/nasional/2012/03/09/brk,20120309-389130,uk.html Govt Prepares Evacuation of RI Citizens from East Timor Yohanes Seo and Jose Sarito Amaral Tempo 9 March 2012 16 April 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20160305092242/http://tempo.co.id/hg/nasional/2012/03/09/brk,20120309-389130,uk.html 5 March 2016 dead On 13 April, just before the second round, about 100 people were reported to have pelted Ruak's campaign headquarters with stones. More violence was reported over the burning of the homes of two "political supporters" and several campaign vehicles. National Police (PNTL) deputy commander Alfonso de Jesus said that due to the presence of police untoward incidents were not serious: "We had six police officers there but [if] straight away they are not respecting the police presence there then the group is using the opportunity to take stones and throw them at the office."https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/latest-news/mob-attacks-east-timor-candidates-office/news-story/3d7b849d9e34117614ef7b3d0ceb1796 Mob attacks East Timor candidate's office Australian Associated Press The Australian 14 April 2012 2012-04-15 https://web.archive.org/web/20120415035035/http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/mob-attacks-east-timor-candidates-office/story-fn3dxix6-1226326571762 subscription live 19 April 2012 Results About 620,000 people out of a population of 1,100,000 are able to vote. There are 13 electoral districts in the country.http://www.skynews.com.au/world/article.aspx?id=730122&vId=3131013 Ramos-Horta voted out in East Timor Sky News 18 March 2012 16 April 2012 Voting took place between 7:00 and 15:00 with no reports of untoward incidents. In at least one polling station that was monitored, the attendants unsealed the ballots delivered under United Nations Police protection. A high voter turnout was also recorded with some polling stations needing to use their reserve ballots. Ermenegildo Lopes, the leader of the Bloku Ploklamador, said that his party's representatives indicated that no one would cross the 50% threshold to avoid a run-off. The AFP also said the election was "remarkably organised" in contrast to the pre-election violence in 2006.https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jMplRMSDDLk_D_HwY5i30O9CTaVA?docId=CNG.7e0b7b93a2e67c1152731dc62d9b5a24.4a1 https://archive.today/20130125163356/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jMplRMSDDLk_D_HwY5i30O9CTaVA?docId=CNG.7e0b7b93a2e67c1152731dc62d9b5a24.4a1 dead 25 January 2013 AFP: Ramos-Horta out as East Timor heads for run-off 17 March 2012 16 April 2012 Ramos-Horta said of the election that "there has not been a single incidence of violence" and that he continues to believe the country is already ready to take control of its security. The preliminary hand-counted result, broadcast live on RTTL, of over 70% of the votes indicated that Francisco Guterres was leading with 27.28% of the votes, followed by Taur Matan Ruak with 24.17% of the votes and incumbent president José Ramos-Horta followed with 19.43% of the votes (though Amaral had died, his name was still on the result notification issued by the election commission). Provisional results for the second round were scheduled to be announced within 48 hours of the polls closing,http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2012/04/201241612630412630.html East Timor votes for new president - Asia-Pacific Al Jazeera English 4 October 2011 19 April 2012 though they were announced a day earlier. Though the final result had to be certified by the Court of Appeals, Ruak had got 61.23% of the votes.http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2012/04/2012417234516737874.html Matan Ruak 'wins' East Timor polls - Asia-Pacific Al Jazeera English 10 April 2011 19 April 2012 Turnout was 72.1%.http://www.rulers.org/2012-04.html April 2012 Rulers.org 19 April 2012 Francisco Guterres Fretilin 133635 174408 Taur Matan Ruak Independent 119462 275471 José Ramos-Horta Independent 81231 Fernando de Araújo Democratic Party 80381 Rogério Lobato Independent 16219 José Luís Guterres Frenti-Mudança 9235 Manuel Tilman Association of Timorese Heroes 7226 Abílio Araújo de Timorese Nationalist Party 6294 Lucas da Costa de Independent 3862 Francisco Gomes (East Timorese politician) de Francisco Gomes Francisco Gomes People's Freedom Party of the Aileba de Partidu Liberta Povu Aileba 3531 Maria do Céu Independent 1843 Angelita Pires de Independent 1742 25272 8824 627295 627295 IFES, IFES Reactions Ramos-Horta said that he had no disappointment over the result and that both the leaders were capable enough of ensuring peace and stability, which was his primary concern.http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2012/03/201231811195921765.html East Timor president out of poll race Al Jazeera English 18 March 2012 16 April 2012 He also conceded defeat and added: "On the stroke of midnight on May 19 I will hand over leadership of the country to the new president, one of the two who are now going for a second round."http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2012/03/201231932647243964.html East Timor's Ramos Horta admits defeat Al Jazeera English 19 March 2012 16 April 2012 Ruak's spokesman Fidelis Magalhães said after the second round that "we are very much elevated by the result, by the current outcome. We expect to see some changes [in the final count], minor, probably one or two percentage points, but without a clear swing or fluctuation of points." Ameerah Haq, the UN secretary-general's special representative for East Timor, was reported to have said that if the presidential and parliamentary elections go off without incidents the UNMIT would leave the country. Analysis Al Jazeera suggested that a win for Ruak would adversely effect FRETILIN's position in the parliamentary election by showing support for Gusmão's incumbent coalition.http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2012/04/2012416233543425697.html Matan Ruak set to become East Timor president - Asia-Pacific Al Jazeera English 4 October 2011 19 April 2012 The Australian suggested that the voting patterns were indicative of a tough negotiation process, after the parliamentary election, to form a government, even harder than the previous appointment of Xanana Gusmão after the 2006 East Timorese crisis. It pointed to the 2007 election in indicating that Ramos-Horta and Taur Matan Ruak's current performance, if seen as proxy CNRT candidates, showed a strengthening of voted by two or three percentage points. However, though, in the previous election Guiterres was unable to get more than three percent in between the two rounds signifying an inability to get third-party votes, in this election he gained 10 percent and the support of two minor parties.April 2012 It also quoted the co-ordinator of the Timor-Leste Friendship Network/Deakin University Observer Mission Damien Kingsbury as saying Gusmão would be happier with the result than FRETILIN's leader Mari Alkatiri, who seeks to become prime minister again. To further complicate the government formation later in the year, The Australian also suggested that Fernando de Araujo's Democratic Party, which is a part of the coalition, is hindered by the poor relationship with Gusmão and that the Timorese Social Democratic Association has factionalised since the death of Amaral.http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/big-call-for-east-timor-president-over-prime-ministerial-appointment/story-e6frg6so-1226330713076 Big call for East Timor President Taur Matan Ruak over prime ministerial appointment Peter Alford 18 April 2012 The Australian 19 April 2012October 2026 medicmedic The Sydney Morning Herald attributed the result to personality politics. Analysing the voter returns, it suggested that supporters of the Democratic Party or Ramos-Horta voted for CNRT and sent a message to the party that it could lose its support base if it allied with FRETILIN. It similarly pointed out that while FRETILIN can consistently turn out plurality support, it is unable to gather majority support and that if FRETILIN had got a majority it would claim that Section 106 of the constitution the president would be obligated to choose a new prime minister from parliamentary support. The newspaper also said that compared to the previous election this one was "remarkably calm" with "few relatively minor disturbances compared." References Notes Further reading Kingsbury Damien Damien Kingsbury Timor-Leste to go to the polls https://www.eastasiaforum.org/2012/02/29/presidential-elections-send-timor-leste-to-the-polls/ East Asia Forum 20 January 2022 29 February 2012 Leach Michael Presidential elections in Timor-Leste: what's at stake? https://insidestory.org.au/presidential-elections-in-timor-leste-whats-at-stake/ Inside Story 30 November 2020 4 March 2012 Leach Michael Timor's change of leader https://insidestory.org.au/timors-change-of-leader/ Inside Story 30 November 2020 19 March 2012 7 Leach Michael Timor-Leste: the presidential runoff https://insidestory.org.au/timor-leste-the-presidential-runoff/ Inside Story 30 November 2020 13 April 2012 7 External links Category:Presidential elections in Timor-Leste East Timor Presidential election