Michel Martelly and club owner in Haiti in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Martelly became associated with the neo-Duvalierist Haitian military and police, including figures such as police chief Michel François, and he agreed with the 1991 Haitian coup d'état against Jean-Bertrand Aristide. In 1995, after Aristide had been restored to office, Martelly's name appeared on a hit list of coup supporters, and he stayed away from Haiti for almost a year. During this time, he released a song, "Prezidan" (on the album "Pa Manyen"), "an exuberant ditty that called for a president who played compas". However, he did not run
James Michel observers. According to official results, President René and his Seychelles People's Progressive Front party won presidential and legislative elections in 2001 and 2002 respectively, with about 54% of the vote in both cases. After retiring from politics in 2016, Michel created the James Michel Foundation to fund and support projects that focuses on blue economy and climate change. After serving as Vice-President for nearly eight years, beginning in August 1996, Michel became President on Julh 14, 2004, when René stepped down. At that point, Michel was René's longest-serving cabinet minister. As President, he held the portfolios of Defence, Police, Information,