[2] On 6 September, he was declared president-elect of São Tomé and Príncipe, receiving 58% of the vote and defeating Guilherme Posser da Costa of the MLSTP/PSD.

[3] Vila Nova was born in Neves, a city in Lembá District on the northern coast of São Tomé Island.

He received a degree in telecommunications engineering from the University of Oran, Algeria in 1985, then returned to become the head of the computer department of the government Statistics Directorate.

[4] Vila Nova served as Minister of Public Works and Natural Resources in the cabinet of Patrice Trovoada from 2010[5] until the government lost its majority in 2012.

[6] He was appointed Minister of Infrastructure, Natural Resources and the Environment when Trovoada's Independent Democratic Action (ADI) regained the majority in 2014.