In a third failed attempt, the election of Portugal’s President of Parliament was met with deep political divisions in the newly elected “Assembleia da República” on March 10th. Despite all candidates failing to secure an absolute majority of 116 votes, even in the final round of voting, MPs will reconvene on Wednesday to try again, with parties able to nominate new candidates. This sets a challenging tone for Portugal’s new Prime Minister, Luis Montenegro, who leads the conservative alliance Democratic Alliance (AD).
Montenegro’s candidate for President of Parliament, José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, came in second with 88 votes, trailing behind Francisco Assis of the Socialist Party PS who received 90 votes. However, despite his party winning the most votes in the recent election and assuming the role of Prime Minister after narrowly defeating long-standing socialists, Montenegro only holds 80 out of 230 seats in the new parliament. The Socialists lost 42 seats and now have 78 MPs while right-wing populist party Chega led by André Ventura gained over 50 seats.
Given that there is no likelihood of a “grand coalition” between conservatives and socialists and Montenegro’s refusal to collaborate with Chega, governing is expected to be challenging. If Montenegro fails to secure a majority in the upcoming parliamentary vote on his government program, another election may loom. As Montenegro prepares to present his cabinet on Thursday and the new government officially takes office on April 2nd, Portugal’s political landscape remains uncertain.
