were won by UPRONA's rival, Front pour la Démocratie au Burundi (FRODEBU). The new President of Burundi, Melchior Ndadaye—the leader of FRODEBU and the first Hutu to become head of state, offered Kinigi the position of Prime Minister of Burundi in his new government to succeed Adrien Sibomana. She reportedly considered the offer for some time, but eventually decided to accept it, reasoning that she was not more politically inexperienced than the army officers which had previously ruled the country. Furthermore, she was personally acquainted with Ndadaye, having studied alongside him at Parisian institutions and even sat on a committee that judged his academic performance. She was also an acquaintance of Léonard Nyangoma and Cyprien Ntaryamira, two FRODEBU politicians who Ndadaye wanted to become ministers in the new government. Speaking of her selection, Kinigi stated that it was "a good surprise for Burundian women primarily, but for African women too." FRODEBU hardliners were angered by Kinigi's appointment, seeing her assumption of the premiership to be a betrayal by Ndadaye. Radical UPRONA members were also displeased with her selection, since the party did not formally nominate her as a candidate, and they felt that Ndadaye had chosen her purely because she was a Tutsi woman and did not expect to rely on her abilities in office. The government ultimately comprised two-thirds Hutu and one-third Tutsi members. Kinigi was one of two women ministers. The government was sworn-in on 10 July. Kinigi wished to pursue economic development while she was prime minister, but thought that this could not be achieved until ethnic tensions were reduced. Thus, she declared that ethnic reconciliation would be her highest priority. In mid-October she dispatched her ministers across the country on a mission to promote calm and understanding; she went to the northeast to denounce the "barbarism" of political violence associated with the previous elections. On 21 October President Ndadaye and several other officials were killed by Tutsi soldiers in a coup attempt. A puppet civilian figure, François Ngeze, was presented by military authorities as the new head of state. Kinigi's bodyguards remained loyal to her during the takeover. She and other senior government figures took refuge in the French embassy. She was the highest-ranking civilian official to survive the coup attempt. From the embassy she continued to issue directives on government policy. Buyoya and his predecessor, Jean Baptiste Bagaza, both gave their support to her government