Fradique de Menezes

president of Sao Tome and Principe

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July 16, 2026

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Fradique de Menezes served as the president of São Tomé and Príncipe, an island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, off the coast of Central Africa. He was first elected in 2001, representing the Independent Democratic Action party. His presidency was marked by political struggles with the National Assembly. In 2003, he was briefly deposed in a military coup but was reinstated through international negotiations. De Menezes was reelected in 2006. São Tomé and Príncipe gained independence from Portugal in 1975 and has since navigated challenges in establishing a stable democracy and economy.12

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Sao Tome and Principe
After independence
He was succeeded by businessman Fradique de Menezes of Independent Democratic Action (Portuguese: Acção Democrática Independente; ADI), the party with which Trovoada had been affiliated since 1994. Within months of de Menezes’s election, a power struggle erupted between the new president and the National Assembly, which was dominated by the…
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He was succeeded by businessman Fradique de Menezes of Independent Democratic Action (Portuguese: Acção Democrática Independente; ADI), the party with which Trovoada had been affiliated since 1994. Within months of de Menezes’s election, a power struggle erupted between the new president and the National Assembly, which was dominated by the…
Read More