Cabo Verde Plans 145 International Observers for November 15 Presidential Vote

Cabo Verde's National Electoral Commission said on 6 November that it is accrediting 145 international observers from five organisations for the presidential election on 15 November 2026. The figure describes a planned observation mission, not a verified count of monitors already present or approved.

The commission's announcement assigns 77 observers to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), including 10 already in Cabo Verde at the time of the statement. It lists 37 from the African Union, 13 from the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), 13 from the network of judicial and electoral administration bodies of the CPLP (ROJAE-CPLP), and five from the International Organisation of La Francophonie. The announced allocations add up to 145.

In a separate announcement on 3 November, ECOWAS said it had deployed a long-term observation mission of 20 experts, scheduled to work across the islands from 3 to 19 November. It also described a short-term mission of around 60 observers and said it would establish a situation room to monitor election developments. These earlier ECOWAS planning figures and the CNE's later accreditation figures are not independent confirmations of final attendance.

The commission said missions would observe voting, polling-station closures and counting procedures, and would meet electoral authorities, candidates and civil-society representatives. Its published election timetable sets polling for Sunday, 15 November. The CNE said six presidential candidates would campaign until 13 November under rules intended to provide equal broadcasting opportunities.

The observation arrangements provide for scrutiny of electoral administration; they are not evidence of irregularities or a forecast of the outcome. The announcements do not establish that all 145 monitors have arrived or been accredited. Final accreditation, actual deployment, official complaints and the missions' post-election assessments remain to be checked.