The Movement for Democracy (Portuguese: Movimento para a Democracia, MpD) is a Christian democratic and liberal party in Cape Verde. Established in 1990, it was the ruling party from 1991 to 2001 and returned to power in the 2016 parliamentary election. Its members are nicknamed "os ventoinhas" (the wind fans) in Portuguese, a reference to the party's logo.
History
The MpD was established on 14 March 1990 by Carlos Veiga after Prime Minister Pedro Pires of the African Party for the Independence of Cape Verde (PAICV, formerly the sole legal party) allowed its creation.[1] The party was publicly launched in May 1990, and its first convention was held in November 1990.
Following the MpD's second convention in January 1993, splits developed within the party, with two groups, List A and List B, emerging.[2] A split in 1994 led to the creation of the Democratic Convergence Party.[3] Despite losing six seats, the party retained its parliamentary majority in the 1995 elections, whilst Monteiro was re-elected unopposed in the presidential elections the following year.
In July 2013, Ulisses Correia e Silva, the mayor of the capital, Praia, became party's new chairman, following Carlos Veiga, who stepped down after five years.[5]
Fonseca was re-elected as president in the 2016 presidential election.[6] The MpD also won a majority in the National Assembly during the 2016 parliamentary elections, ending fifteen years of PAICV majorities in that body and electing its leader Ulisses Correia e Silva as Prime Minister of Cape Verde.[7]
