Presidential elections 2026: Milton Paiva maintains his pre-candidacy despite MpD's support for Joana Rosa.

"I maintain that presidential legitimacy rests on the citizens and the independence of the candidate," he stated in an interview with Inforpress from Mindelo.

Milton Paiva assured that the MpD's decision to support another candidate does not alter his willingness to run in the presidential elections, emphasizing that candidacies for the office of President of the Republic are of a "supra-partisan nature".

According to the same source, the basis for legitimizing a presidential candidacy is citizens' signatures, and they stated that they already have the minimum number required by law and that their team continues to work to increase the number of signatories.

“I have the bare minimum, just over a thousand signatures,” he stated, explaining that his supporters come from different political backgrounds and sectors of society, including independents, academics, and people linked to various political forces.

According to Milton Paiva, this transversality corresponds to the very nature of the presidential function, arguing that the head of state must maintain a position of independence and equidistance in relation to political parties.

The pre-candidate revealed that he had requested support from various political forces, including the MpD, but lamented that neither he nor Manuel Pina had been heard by the outgoing National Directorate of the party, despite having formally requested it.

“They showed no interest in learning about our project,” he said, noting, however, that the way the MpD conducted the process of choosing which candidate to support is an internal party matter and not a matter for its presidential platform.

Paiva also stated that he would like to have as much support as possible, but considered that this does not necessarily have to be institutional, and could come from individuals, currents of opinion, and organized citizens.

When questioned about the fact that the current National Directorate of the MpD decided to provide support before the election of the new party bodies, he argued that the decision should have been left to the new leadership, whose election is scheduled for the coming days.

Nevertheless, he reiterated that he does not intend to condition his candidacy on the decisions of the parties, maintaining that he is currently "in a space of citizenship".

Milton Paiva does not currently hold any party office, and he believes this situation gives him "greater distance and independence" to present a presidential candidacy supported by sectors of civil society.

The pre-candidate also argued that holding positions in party bodies or parliamentary groups may be incompatible with the moderating nature of the presidential role, although he left the evaluation of their respective positions to the candidates and voters.

Milton Paiva is in São Vicente for professional reasons, and is also taking advantage of the trip to make contacts related to his pre-candidacy.

So far, in addition to Milton Paiva, five other personalities have publicly expressed their intention to run in the presidential elections on November 15th, including: Joana Rosa, Casimiro de Pina, Milton Paiva, Gilson Alves, Péricles Tavares and Fernando Delgado.

However, two candidacies that were initially announced are no longer part of the current picture.

Former minister Janine Lélis withdrew from the race on August 14, citing changes in the political, institutional, and party landscape, as well as increasing polarization in public debate.

Hélio Sanches also withdrew his pre-candidacy, justifying the decision by the lack of political conditions within the MpD.

The President of the Republic, José Maria Neves, has not yet said whether he will run for a second term.

Inforpress