Parliamentary elections were held in

Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau ( ; pt, Guiné-Bissau; ff, italic=no, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫 𞤄𞤭𞤧𞤢𞥄𞤱𞤮, Gine-Bisaawo, script=Adlm; Mandinka: ''Gine-Bisawo''), officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau ( pt, República da Guiné-Bissau, links=no ), ...

on 28 March 2004 after repeated postponements caused by political and financial chaos in the country, including a coup d'état that overthrew President

Kumba Ialá Kumba Ialá Embaló, also spelled Yalá (15 March 1953 – 4 April 2014), was a Bissau-Guinean politician who was president from 17 February 2000 until he was deposed in a bloodless military coup on 14 September 2003. He belonged to the Balant ...

in September 2003. The former ruling party, the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC), won the largest number of seats, but did not obtain a majority. Former President Yala's party, the

Party for Social Renewal The Party for Social Renewal ( pt, Partido da Renovação Social, PRS) is a political party in Guinea-Bissau. It is one of the country's leading parties and is currently the main opposition party. History 1990s Multi-party democracy was introduce ...

(PRS), came second with 35 seats. The PAIGC reached an agreement with the PRS for its legislative support (a previous attempt at reaching a deal with the

United Social Democratic Party The United Social Democratic Party ( pt, Partido Unido Social Democrático, PUSD) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Guinea-Bissau. History The party was established on 30 May 1991 and legalised on 6 June 1992.Peter Karibe Men ...

, which won 17 seats, failed), and in May 2004 the new parliament was sworn in, with PAIGC leader

Carlos Gomes Júnior Carlos Domingos Gomes Júnior (born December 19, 1949)
(in Portuguese). is a Young technocrats prominent in new elected government
IRIN, 13 May 2004

Conduct

Although voting reportedly took place on time in the interior of Guinea-Bissau, it was delayed in much of the capital Bissau, as electoral materials were delivered late to many polling stations. The National Electoral Commission ordered the polling stations that opened late to remain open past the scheduled end of voting to ensure that everyone would have a chance to vote. About a third of polling stations in Bissau reportedly never opened on the day of the election, and these stations were ordered to open on the following day, March 29.Guinea-Bissau: Election extended for second day after confusion in capital
IRIN, 28 March 2004 Over 100 international observers were present for the election. The

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

, the

Economic Community of West African States The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS; also known as in French and Portuguese) is a regional political and economic union of fifteen countries located in West Africa. Collectively, these countries comprise an area of , and in ...

(ECOWAS), the

Community of Portuguese Language Countries The Community of Portuguese Language Countries ( Portuguese: ''Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa''; abbreviated as the CPLP), also known as the Lusophone Commonwealth (''Comunidade Lusófona''), is an international organization and pol ...

, and

La Francophonie LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

sent observers, as did

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Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

and the

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Results

References

{{Guinea-Bissau elections Elections in Guinea-Bissau

Legislative election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

March 2004 events in Africa