Lourenço, the quiet man leading Angola’s 38-year changing of guard

Joao Lourenco, presidential candidate for the ruling MPLA party, speaks at an election rally in Malanje, Angola, August 17, 2017. REUTERS/Stephen Eisenhammer

MALANJE, Angola (Reuters) - On a hot morning in August, Joمo Lourenço, a man more used to army barracks and the closed doors of party politics, rose awkwardly to address thousands of rural supporters.

For most in the crowd, trucked in from surrounding villages and kitted out in red T-shirts, the stern-faced man before them was an unknown quantity, a quiet man who used to be defence minister.