[2] As none of the presidential nominees received at least 50% of the cast votes, a runoff was held on 19 April 2022, between the top two candidates, José Ramos-Horta and Guterres.

[5] As a result of constitutional provisions which limit presidents to two five-year terms in a lifetime, Ramos-Horta will be ineligible to run in any future presidential election.

[12] However, former Fretilin member and fourth place candidate Lere Anan Timur refused to back Guterres or Ramos-Horta.

[12] Fretilin ran a campaign stating that Ramos-Horta was unfit to be president, blaming him for the political violence and crisis that happened during his prime ministership in 2006.

[11] In addition, Ramos-Horta stated his intention on working with the government to address supply chain issues from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and Russian invasion of Ukraine.

[17] Andrew Jacobs, the representative of the European Union in East Timor, said an EU delegation from Brussels would be involved in the process of observation for the 2022 election.

[18] The representative of the United States embassy in Dili, Charge d’Affaires Tom Daley, said the U.S. would send observers to oversee the election process.

This achievement represents another milestone in Timor-Leste’s tremendous work to build and strengthen its robust, vibrant democracy over its nearly 20-year history as an independent nation.

The change in strategy was announced to reporters by the CNRT secretary general, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay, at a party meeting held in June 2022.