Parliamentary elections were held in

Timor-Leste Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

on 22 July 2017.

Fretilin The Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (, abbreviated as Fretilin) is a separatist organization turned centre-left political party in Timor-Leste. It presently holds 19 of 65 seats in the National Parliament. Fretilin formed the ...

narrowly emerged as the largest party in the

National Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

, winning 23 seats to the 22 won by the

National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction The National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (, CNRT) is a political party in East Timor founded by former President Xanana Gusmão in March 2007 in preparation for the 2007 parliamentary election. According to provisional results, the ...

, which had been the largest party in the outgoing Parliament.

Background

After the

2012 East Timorese parliamentary election Parliamentary elections were held in Timor-Leste on 7 July 2012.Election Profile
IFES The

, there was first of all a coalition of the

(CNRT), Democratic Party (PD), and

Frenti-Mudança The Front for National Reconstruction of Timor-Leste – Change (, Frenti–Mudança) is a political party in East Timor led by Vice-Prime minister José Luís Guterres.Xanana Gusmão José Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmão (; born 20 June 1946) is an East Timorese politician. He has served as the 6th prime minister of East Timor since 2023, previously serving in that position from 2007 to 2015. A former rebel, he also served as E ...

, the new Prime Minister, on February 16, 2015,

Rui Maria de Araújo Rui Maria de Araújo (born 21 May 1964) is an East Timorese politician who served as its prime minister from 2015 to 2017. He is a physician and member of Fretilin. He was Minister of Health from 2001 to 2006 and Deputy Prime Minister from ...

. Since there was no parliamentary opposition,

Taur Matan Ruak José Maria de Vasconcelos (born 10 October 1956), popularly known as Taur Matan Ruak (Tetum for "Two Sharp Eyes"), is an East Timorese politician who served as 9th prime minister of East Timor from 2018 to 2023. He also served as 5th presi ...

, the

President of Timor-Leste The president of Timor-Leste, officially the President of the Democratic Republic of Timor Leste (; ) is the head of state of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste. The executive powers of the president are limited; however, the President is ...

, took on this role himself, leading to more conflict between the president and the rest of the government. This led to a split between the CNRT and the PD. The creation of the

People's Liberation Party People's Liberation Party may refer to: * People's Liberation Party (Turkey), a Marxist–Leninist communist party in Turkey * People's Liberation Party (Timor-Leste), a political party in Timor-Leste (former East Timor) * People's Liberation Par ...

(PLP), which was shortly after led by Taur Matan Ruak as he was no longer president after the 2017 East Timorese presidential election, was a major event in the run-up to the election. The PLP was competing for many of the same voters as the PD, which was expected to cost the PD votes. After the sudden death of PD party leader Fernando de Araújo, António da Conceição took over his positions. However, he was supported in the election by the PLP and

Kmanek Haburas Unidade Nasional Timor Oan Kmanek Haburas Unidade Nasional Timor Oan (, KHUNTO) is a political party in East Timor. KHUNTO is affiliated with the ''Korka'' martial arts group, and has a membership base that consists of various martial arts groups throughout East Timor. His ...

(KHUNTO). The PLP also tended to use smaller rallies in its campaign than the rallies of the major parties, Fretilin and the CNRT.

Frenti-Mudança The Front for National Reconstruction of Timor-Leste – Change (, Frenti–Mudança) is a political party in East Timor led by Vice-Prime minister José Luís Guterres.Jorge da Conceição Teme, one of their top politicians, had gone over to the PDP. Some observers speculated that there would be a shift in the power structure of

. The younger generation had weaker ties to the old heroes of the East Timor independence campaign, and there was expected to be a greater influence from

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

and other social media networks, which are very popular with the younger generation, will have more influence than traditional media.Sapo Notícias
''Ano decisivo em Timor-Leste com eleições presidenciais e legislativas'', 19. Dezember 2016
, Retrieved on 19. December 2016. In a nationwide poll from the

International Republican Institute The International Republican Institute (IRI) is an American nonprofit organization founded in 1983 and funded and supported by the United States federal government. Most of its board is drawn from the Republican Party. Its public mission is to a ...

in November 2016, 98% of the people whom they asked were planning to go vote. 72% expected that the state of Timor-Leste would be better next year, and 49% thought it was already heading in the right direction. 29% of the sample thought that the government had done a very good job and 45% thought that the government had done a good job. 44% considered themselves to have a close connection to

and 75% had a positive opinion of the party. 29% saw the condition of roadways to be the most important issue facing the nation; 32% thought that the condition of roadways had worsened over the last year, but 29% thought that it had improved. A majority of the sample saw improvements in the areas of the

healthcare system A health system, health care system or healthcare system is an organization of people, institutions, and resources that delivers health care services to meet the health needs of target populations. There is a wide variety of health systems aroun ...

(79%),

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

(78%), and

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...

(71%). 66% had concerns about violent riots around election time.

Electoral system

The government amended some provisions in the electoral law in 2016. Exiled East Timorese were given the right to vote. For this, they have to register, which causes problems. For example, there is a larger East Timorese community in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. But their members have to register at the embassy in

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

. In

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, where 20,000 eligible voters are expected (out of a total of 70,000 East Timorese), there are said to be several registration offices. In

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

and the British Isles, there are about 20,000 East Timorese, of whom about 8,000 are expected to be eligible to vote. In Timor-Leste itself, 728,363 eligible voters were registered as of August 2016, more than 153,000 of them in the national capital

Dili Dili (Portuguese language, Portuguese and Tetum language, Tetum: ''Díli'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Timor-Leste. It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed in by mountai ...

alone.Sapo Notícias: , retrieved on 16 December 2016. The voting age was lowered to at least 16 years. For the first time, voters who had not lived during the Indonesian occupation (1975-1999) thus took part. 369,000 (51%) of eligible voters are aged between 17 and 35; 118,000 (33%) are between 36 and 59 years old. 16% of voters are 60 years or older. 1,370 eligible voters are (as of December 2016) 16 years old. The 65 members of the National Parliament were elected from a single nationwide constituency by

closed list Closed list describes the variant of party-list systems where voters can effectively vote for only political parties as a whole; thus they have no influence on the party-supplied order in which party candidates are elected. If voters had some in ...

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to any electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions (Political party, political parties) amon ...

. Parties were required to have a woman in at least every third position in their list, which had resulted in 38% of MPs being female before this election, with the last seat being awarded to the party with the fewest votes if there are several equal maximum numbers. (PDF; 812 kB) und (Portuguese; PDF; 173 kB), Retrieved on 7 July 2012 The government rejected the proposal to raise the three percent hurdle to five percent. Seats were allocated using the

d'Hondt method The D'Hondt method, also called the Jefferson method or the greatest divisors method, is an apportionment method for allocating seats in parliaments among federal states, or in proportional representation among political parties. It belongs to ...

with an electoral threshold of 4%. Voters were able to vote between 07:00 and 15:00 at 1,121 polling stations in 859 polling centres and, for the first time, at overseas stations in Australia (

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and Darwin), South Korea (

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

), Portugal (Lisbon), and the UK (

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

). As many East Timorese have not registered as voters in their place of residence, the electoral authorities estimated that half of the voters would have to travel to their place of origin in another part of the country. The government has therefore declared 21 July a public holiday to facilitate travel. According to the Secretáriado Técnico de Administração Eleitoral (STAE), 764,858 voters are registered. 163,129 of them live in the capital municipality of

alone, which is why there are 187 polling stations and 83 voting centres here alone.

Baucau Baucau (, ) is the second-largest city in Timor-Leste, after Dili, the capital, which lies to its west. Baucau has about 16,000 inhabitants, and is the capital of Baucau municipality, located in the eastern part of the country. In the time ...

has 87,057 voters,

Ermera Ermera (''Vila Ermera'') is a city in East Timor and a former capital of the East Timorese community, Ermera. ''Ermera'' in Mambai language (Timor), Mambai means "red water." It has a population of 8,907. Its geographical coordinates are , ...

77,190 and

Bobonaro Bobonaro is a town in Bobonaro Subdistrict, Bobonaro District, East Timor., United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency The district capital is not in Bobonaro, but is in Maliana Maliana is a city in East Timor, 149 kilomet ...

64,008, while

Aileu Aileu is the main township in Aileu District, East Timor. It is located 47 km (29 mi) southwest of Dili, the national capital, and had a population of 2,788 in 2015. In Portuguese Timor, the city was known as Vila General Carmona ...

(30,344) and Manatuto (30,344) have the fewest registered voters. 1,101 voters were registered in Australia, 589 in Portugal, 208 in the UK, and 227 in South Korea. The official election campaign began on 20 June and ran until 19 July. After election day on 22 July, counting at the municipal level was scheduled to be completed by 24 July and final result known on 27 July. The election result was scheduled be confirmed by the Timor-Leste Supreme Court of Justice by 6 August. International election observers came from the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

, led by five Members of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

National Democratic Institute The National Democratic Institute (NDI) is a non-profit American non-governmental organization whose stated mission is to "support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide through citizen participation, openness and accountability". It is ...

(NDI) and

(IRI) from the United States, Australian organisations and the

diplomatic corps The diplomatic corps () is the collective body of foreign diplomats accredited to a particular country or body. The diplomatic corps may, in certain contexts, refer to the collection of accredited heads of mission ( ambassadors, high commis ...

in Dili.

Parties and candidates

Of the 31 registered parties in Timor-Leste at the beginning of 2017, only the

Christian Democratic Union of Timor The Christian Democratic Union of Timor (''União Democrata-Crista de Timor'') UDC was a centre-right, Christian democratic political party in East Timor. History On 14 March 1998, it split from the União Democrática Timorense (UDT) in Portuga ...

(UDC), KHUNTO, and the

Socialist Party of Timor The Socialist Party of Timor (, PST) is a Marxist–Leninist political party in Timor-Leste (formerly East Timor). History The Socialist Party of Timor was founded in February 1997, whilst East Timor was still under Indonesian occupation (tho ...

(PST) had submitted their electoral lists as of 30 May. 27 parties had picked up forms for the lists but had not yet filled them out and submitted them to the Timor-Leste Supreme Court of Justice. Court President Deolindo dos Santos pointed out that the country's highest court would only accept electoral lists submitted by 6pm on 1 June. Finally, a total of 23 electoral lists were submitted, with one list consisting of the party alliance Bloku Unidade Popular (BUP). Among the contesting parties were also all four factions previously represented in parliament; CNRT, Fretilin, PD, and FM. For the first time, the PLP, the

Timorese Social Democratic Action Center The ''Centro Acção Social-Democrata Timorense'' (), abbreviated as Centro ASDT or CASDT is a political party in East Timor, Timor-Leste. Founded by its late first party president Gil da Costa A.N. Alves, he was the former Secretary General of th ...

(CASDT), the Hope of the Fatherland Party (PEP), the Democratic Unity Development Party (PUDD), and the Freedom Movement for the Maubere people (MLPM) contested. It was initially unclear whether the Timorese Social Democratic Association (ASDT) would be admitted to the election. As in 2012, two different electoral lists from different groupings of the party were received by the Supreme Court of Justice. One from party leader João Andre Avelino Correia, one from party president Francisco da Silva and secretary general Norberto Pinto. If the ASDT had still been admitted, Silva's and Pinto's list would have been recognised. However, admission was eventually denied. Five registered parties did not contest the election. The East Timor National Republic Party (PARENTIL) left the electoral alliance BUP at short notice and did not put up its own list. The

Timorese Nationalist Party The Timorese Nationalist Party (; ; PNT) is a political party in East Timor. Founder and President is Abílio Araújo, who was FRETILIN representative overseas during the Indonesian occupation until his dismissal in 1993. Prior to the 1999 East ...

(PNT) had already submitted its electoral list too late in 2012 and therefore did not participate in the election. This time, too, no electoral list arrived at the court in time. The Timorese Labor Party (PTT) had contested the last election with a joint list with the

Association of Timorese Heroes The Association of Timorese Heroes (Tetum language, Tetum: ''Klibur Oan Timor Asu'wain'', KOTA; , AHT), sometimes known as Sons of the Mountain Warriors, is a Cultural conservatism, culturally conservative political party in East Timor. In 2007, ...

KOTA, but this no longer existed. The PTT did not come up with its own list. In the presidential elections at the beginning of the year, their party leader Angela Freitas had still won 0.84% of the vote. The

National Unity Party The National Unity Party, National United Party, Party of National Unity or National Unity Front may refer to: * National United Party of Afghanistan (founded 2003) * National Unity Party (Albania) * National United Party (Armenia), defunct * Natio ...

(PUN) and the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

(PDL) also did not put up candidates. The last review of the submitted applications ran until June 11. The

People's Party of Timor The People's Party of Timor (; abbreviated PPT) is a conservative political party in East Timor. Its predecessor was the Movimento do Povo de Timor-Leste MPTL (''Movement of the People of Timor-Leste''). The PPT is described as a conservative, ...

(PPT) also fell out. The party had not met the necessary eligibility criteria. Already in 2012, the PPT had not been admitted because it had submitted its electoral list too late. On 15 June, the order on the ballot paper was drawn.

Campaign

Observers noted an increasing professionalisation of the election campaign in Timor-Leste. Fretilin and CNRT posters dominated the street scene, but advertisements from UDT and PLP could also be seen. The CNRT relied on its leader

Xanana Gusmão José Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmão (; born 20 June 1946) is an East Timorese politician. He has served as the 6th prime minister of East Timor since 2023, previously serving in that position from 2007 to 2015. A former rebel, he also served as E ...

as its figurehead. They used the abbreviation "CR7", a reference to the footballer

Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro (; born 5 February 1985) is a Portuguese professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Saudi Pr ...

, who is also popular in Timor-Leste. The CNRT used drones to take aerial photos of infrastructure completed under the CNRT government and other developments in the country. The video was shared on social media and in TV spots on RTTL and the new private channel GMN TV. Fretilin also promoted videos showing a vibrant and active country. They focused the campaign on the young population and also used social networks. Instead of only talking to local leaders, they also went to the markets and parks and distributed promotional material and programmes. The new PLP, which had less money than the two big parties, also relied on social networks. The PLP campaign was led by young people, many of them former journalists from President Taur Matan Ruak's press office, such as

Fidelis Leite Magalhães Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães is an East Timorese political economist, public policy specialist and politician, and a member of the People's Liberation Party (East Timor), People's Liberation Party (PLP). From May 2020 to July 2023, he was ...

, who appeared alongside the former president in televised debates for the PLP. The publications and debates on the internet reached 400,000 East Timorese daily, a good third of the population. While the two big parties held central campaign events in the respective

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

, where supporters (''Militantes'') were driven in from all corners, the PLP held its campaign events on a smaller scale at the level of the administrative posts. On the one hand, this was due to the smaller budget, on the other hand, the idea of the

grassroots A grassroots movement is one that uses the people in a given district, region or community as the basis for a political or continent movement. Grassroots movements and organizations use collective action from volunteers at the local level to imp ...

movement was the inspiration here. The PLP received support in the election campaign from the ''Amigos de Taur Matan Ruak'' (A-TMR). This movement was founded by, among others, Jorge da Conceição Teme, a member of the Frenti-Mudança, and

Abílio Araújo Abilio may refer to: * Abilio James Acosta (born 1971), American journalist * Abílio Brandão (fl. 1948), Portuguese sports shooter * Abílio Cabral (born 1960), Angolan boxer * Abílio Cossa (1922–2003), Mozambican journalist and writer * Abíl ...

, leader of the

PNT. Other members belonged to the CNRT, Fretilin and other parties. Despite their affiliation to other parties, the Amigos appeared at PLP events and promoted Taur Matan Ruak and the PLP during home visits. In the election campaign, the PLP set different priorities than the Fretilin and the CNRT, especially on the issue of land development. Instead of large-scale projects, such as the special economic zone in Oe-Cusse Ambeno and the Tasi-Mane project on the south coast, the PLP wanted to focus on basic health care and educational and agricultural programmes for the population. Oe-Cusse Ambeno was under the leadership of Freilin politician

Marí Alkatiri Mari bin Amude Alkatiri ( '; born 26 November 1949) is a Timorese politician. He was Prime Minister of East Timor from May 2002 until his resignation on 26 June 2006 following weeks of political unrest in the country, and again from September ...

, while the South Coast project in

Cova Lima Cova Lima (, ) is a municipality of East Timor, in the Southwest part of the country. It has a population of 59,455 (Census 2010) and an area of 1,230 km2. The capital of the municipality is Suai, which lies 136 km from Dili, the n ...

was attributed to the CNRT. The PLP criticised, for example, that while there was a new highway along the south coast, the more important connecting road from Suai to Dili remained in poor condition. In 2012, KHUNTO only narrowly failed to clear the three-percent hurdle. The party is said to have particularly close ties to large local martial arts groups. Its campaign was mainly aimed at the unemployed and disillusioned youth. The non-party former president and prime minister, Nobel Peace Prize laureate

José Ramos-Horta José Manuel Ramos-Horta GCL GColIH (; born 26 December 1949) is an East Timorese politician. He has been the president of East Timor since 2022, having previously also held the position from 20 May 2007 to 20 May 2012. Previously he was Mini ...

, attracted attention on social media by praising Fretilin politicians Alkatiri and

Francisco Guterres Francisco Guterres, popularly known as Lú-Olo (born 7 September 1954), is an East Timorese politician who served as 6th president of East Timor from 2017 to 2022. He is also the president of the political party Fretilin, and he was the first ...

for stabilising the country. However, similar words followed later about CNRT leader Xanana Gusmão and the call for PLP leader Taur Matan Ruak to reconcile with him. The election campaign was generally peaceful. Only in the municipality of Baucau were there complaints from Fretilin that former guerrillas had tried to intimidate voters. On the last day of the official election campaign, 19 July, the PLP held its final rally at

Baucau airport Baucau Airport (, , ), formerly Cakung Airport, is an unattended and mostly unused airport near Baucau, East Timor. It is the largest airport in East Timor and has a much longer runway than Dili's Presidente Nicolau Lobato International Airport ...

and Fretilin gathered its supporters at the Nicolau Lobato monument in Dili. The moratorium until election day was generally followed. By 20 July, the election posters had disappeared from the streetscape. Only in the social networks did pictures of the parties' closing events continue to circulate.

Results

Preparasaun_Votasaun_-_Eleisaun_Parlamentar_2017

The first preliminary final result was published on 24 July, and on 27 July the CNE released the official result, which was confirmed by the Supreme Court on 1 August. In the elections, 283,350 women and 300,606 men cast their votes. Turnout was 76.74%, slightly higher than in the presidential election, and almost the same as in 2012. According to the final results, Fretilin became the strongest force with 29.7%, followed by the CNRT with 29.5%. The PLP managed to enter parliament with 10.6%, as did the PD with 9.8% and the KHUNTO, which narrowly failed in 2012, with 6.4%. Frenti-Mudança, like the other parties, failed to clear the 4 per cent hurdle. With the PD almost maintaining its share of the vote, analysts suspect that the PLP benefited mainly from the CNRT's losses. It is also credited with great success among first-time voters, who accounted for 20% of the electorate. Fretilin won the most votes in the exclave of Oe-Cusse Ambeno, polling stations in Australia and Portugal, and in its strongholds of Baucau, Lautém, and Viqueque, municipalities in the east. The CNRT was the strongest force in the western part of the main state territory and in polling stations in South Korea and the United Kingdom. The PLP was the second strongest force in the municipality of Baucau and in the polling stations in Australia and Portugal, ahead of the CNRT, while the PD was ahead of the Fretilin in Cova Lima.

Aftermath

Fretilin and CNRT began talks on a grand coalition shortly after the election. On 4 August, Gusmão announced his resignation as CNRT party leader and at the same time stated that his party should not enter any government as it had been voted out by the electorate. However, Gusmão left open the possibility for CNRT members to become members of the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

. The negotiations with Fretilin were continued by CNRT General Secretary

Francisco Kalbuadi Lay Francisco Kalbuadi "Chico" Lay (; born ) is an East Timorese politician, businessman and sports administrator, and a member of the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (, CNRT). He is the more senior of East Timor's two incumbent De ...

. However, after an extraordinary congress of the CNRT spoke out against a coalition, the Fretilin announced talks with the three other parties in parliament. The PD, however, demanded ministerial posts here that the Fretilin could never cede. Taur Matan Ruak announced early on that the PLP wanted to play an active opposition role in parliament. The PLP confirmed this in the negotiations with Fretilin, but they would not force new elections or block the budget. Therefore, the negotiations amounted to a minority government of Fretilin and KHUNTO, with the acquiescence of the PD. Later, Fretilin General Secretary Marí Alkatiri explained that the coalition negotiations with the PLP had failed because they wanted

to be President of Parliament. However, there was no support for him. The members of the newly elected parliament were to be sworn in on 21 August, but the first session was postponed. They wanted to wait for the return of Xanana Gusmão. He was abroad for negotiations on the

border dispute A territorial dispute or boundary dispute is a disagreement over the possession or control of territories (land, water or airspace) between two or more political entities. Context and definitions Territorial disputes are often related to the ...

between Australia and Timor-Leste. Until then, the old parliament and government acted as a transition. The non-governmental organisation ''Fundasaun Mahein'' criticised that this was not in accordance with the constitution, as the new parliament should have convened within 15 days after the Supreme Court confirmed the result. After Gusmão's return, parliament met for the first time on 5 September 2017. Aniceto Guterres Lopes (Fretilin) was elected President of Parliament with 33 out of 65 votes. He was thus two votes short of the alliance of Fretilin, KHUNTO and PD. His opponent, the former parliamentary president Adérito Hugo da Costa (CNRT), received 32 votes. On 12 September, Marí Alkatiri confirmed that he would be nominated as prime minister by the coalition of Fretilin, PD and KHUNTO. The previous head of government, Rui Maria de Araújo, lacked support within his own party. Alkatiri was already prime minister from 2002 to 2006, but had to resign prematurely due to the unrest in Timor-Leste in 2006. On 13 September, Alkatiri and PD leader

Mariano Sabino Lopes Mariano Sabino Lopes (born 12 April 1975), also known by his ''nom de guerre'' , is an East Timorese politician and a member of the Democratic Party (PD). He is the more junior of Timor-Leste's two incumbent Deputy Prime Ministers,The Consti ...

signed the coalition agreement. However, representatives of KHUNTO were not present. An internal dispute had arisen over participation in the government. Although Fretilin and PD did not have a majority in parliament, President Guterres appointed Alkatiri as prime minister on 14 September and gave him the mandate to form a government. However, KHUNTO announced that he would continue to cooperate with Fretilin and PD. On 15 September, Alkatiri was sworn in as prime minister and the first members of his cabinet were sworn in.

References

Notes

External links

{{East Timorese elections

Parliamentary In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

Parliamentary elections in Timor-Leste