According to proexchangerates, the population’s displeasure with the austerity policy was shown again in the local elections at the end of September 2013, in which the governing parties suffered heavy losses. Nonetheless, on November 26, 2013, Parliament passed the 2014 budget, which provided for further savings measures amounting to € 3.9 billion. On May 17, 2014, Portugal officially left the euro rescue package. In the European elections on May 25, 2014, the opposition Partido Socialista emerged victorious with 31.4% of the vote. The governing coalition suffered a loss of votes. At the beginning of June 2014, the EU and IMF suspended the transfer of the last loan tranche of € 2.6 billion. The reason was a ruling by the Portuguese Constitutional Court, according to which several government austerity decisions, such as wage cuts in the civil service and pensions, as well as unemployment and sickness benefits, had been declared unconstitutional. The court ruling resulted in a funding gap of € 700 million for the 2014 state budget. The government confirmed on June 12, 2014 that it would not call up the last loan tranche. In the last few months she has been able to build up enough reserves to cover her financial needs. In August 2014, the Constitutional Court again dismissed some government austerity measures, including the taxation of pensions, as unconstitutional. As in previous years, thousands of people protested against the government’s austerity measures in 2014. In November 2014, the former prime minister became that she will not call the last loan tranche. In the last few months she has been able to build up enough reserves to cover her financial needs. In August 2014, the Constitutional Court again dismissed some government austerity measures, including the taxation of pensions, as unconstitutional. As in previous years, thousands of people protested against the government’s austerity measures in 2014. In November 2014, the former prime minister became that she will not call the last loan tranche. In the last few months she has been able to build up enough reserves to cover her financial needs. In August 2014, the Constitutional Court again dismissed some government austerity measures, including the taxation of pensions, as unconstitutional. As in previous years, thousands of people protested against the government’s austerity measures in 2014. In November 2014, the former prime minister became Sócratesremanded in custody on corruption charges. The PSD Interior Minister Miguel Macedo (* 1959) resigned in the same month because of a corruption affair in connection with the issuing of visas to wealthy non-EU foreigners.

The government’s austerity and reform policies, which went hand in hand with serious social upheavals, led to a hesitant economic recovery and a decline in unemployment, although the state debt burden remained high. Over 200,000 Portuguese had gone abroad to look for work since 2011. Against this background, parliamentary elections took place on October 4, 2015. The electoral alliance “Portugal à Frente” (German: Portugal in front) formed by the governing parties PSD and CDS-PP won only 38.6% of the votes and 107 of the 230 seats in parliament. The coalition had thus lost an absolute majority in the parliament. The PSD had 89 seats (2011: 108), the CDS-PP won 18 seats (2011: 24). The left opposition recorded gains. The PS received 32.3% of the votes and 86 seats (2011: 74). The Bloco de Esquerda, which moved into parliament with 18 members (2011: 8), made strong gains. The ecological-communist alliance CDU also gained slightly with 17 seats (2011: 16). Talks about the formation of a stable coalition of “Portugal à Frente” and the Partido Socialista were unsuccessful. President appointed on October 22, 2015 Cavaco Silva P. Passos Coelho again as Prime Minister. The minority cabinet made up of PSD and CDS-PP by him was sworn in on October 30, 2015. The left opposition rejected the government program on November 10, 2015 in parliament. 123 of 230 MPs voted against the bill, overthrowing the newly formed cabinet. President Cavaco Silva then commissioned A. Costa, the general secretary of the Partido Socialista, to form a government. Following tolerance agreements with the Left Bloc (BE) and the Greens (PEV), he formed a minority cabinet, which was sworn in on November 26, 2015.

In the presidential elections on January 24, 2016, the former PSD chairman M. Rebelo de Sousa, who was supported by the bourgeois opposition, won the first ballot with around 52% of the vote. The second-placed candidate, the independent left-wing politician and long-time rector of the University of Lisbon António Sampaio da Nóvoa (* 1954), received almost 23% of the vote. Incumbent Cavaco Silva was constitutionally unable to run for two terms.

In the parliamentary elections on October 6, 2019, the ruling PS of Prime Minister A.Costa gained 36.7% of the vote by 4.4% and thus received 106 of 230 parliamentary seats. The conservative PPD / PSD won 27.9% of the vote (77 seats). The right-wing conservative CDS-PP coalition party received 3 seats with 4.3% of the vote. The third strongest force was the left-wing populist Bloco de Esquerda, which lost a slight 9.7% and entered parliament with 19 seats.

Portugal strives for close economic, social and cultural cooperation with the other Portuguese-speaking countries (Angola, Brazil, Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde, Mozambique, Saõ Tomé and Príncipe): in 1996 the lusofone community Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portugesa was founded. The last territory of the Portuguese colonial empire, the overseas province of Macau, was returned to China in 1999. A NATO summit was held in Portugal in 2010. The country often participates in NATO and UN missions.

Heads of State in Portugal

Portugal, heads of state
Kings
House of Burgundy
Alfonso I, the Conqueror (King since 1139) 1128-1185
Sancho I. 1185-1211
Alfonso II 1211-1223
Sancho II. 1223-1246
Alfons III 1246-1279
Dinis (Dionysius) 1279-1325
Alfons IV 1325-1357
Peter I. 1357-1367
Ferdinand I, the handsome 1367-1383
House Avis
Johann I. 1385-1433
Eduard (Duarte) 1433-1438
Alfons V, the African 1438-1481
Johann II. 1481-1495
Emanuel I (Manuel I) 1495-1521
Johann III. 1521-1557
Sebastian 1557-1578
Heinrich 1578-1580
Spanish kings (Habsburgs)
Philip I (II.) 1580-1598
Philip II (III.) 1598-1621
Philip III (IV.) 1621-1640
House Bragança
Johann IV. 1640-1656
Alfonso VI 1656-1667 (1683)
Peter II (1667–1683 Prince Regent) 1683-1706
Johann V. 1706-1750
Joseph I. 1750-1777
Maria I. 1777-1816
Johann VI. (1792–1816 Prince Regent) 1816-1826
Peter IV 1826-1828
Michael I (Dom Miguel) 1828-1834
Maria II. Da Glória (from 1837 with Ferdinand II.) 1826 / 34-1853
Peter V. 1853-1861
Ludwig I. 1861-1889
Charles I. 1889-1908
Emanuel II (Manuel II) 1908-1910
President of the Republic
1st republic
JT Fernandes Braga 1910-1911
M. de Arriaga 1911-1915
J. T. Fernandes Braga 1915
B. L. Machado Guimarães 1915-1917
S. B. Cardoso da Silva Pais 1917-1918
J. do Canto e Castro 1918-1919
A.J. de Almeida 1919-1923
M. Teixeira Gomes 1923-1925
B. L. Machado Guimarães 1925-1926
2nd republic
O. A. de Fragoso Carmona 1928-1951
F. H. Craveiro Lopes 1951-1958
A. D. Rodrigues Tomás 1958-1974
3rd republic
AS Ribeiro de Spínola 1974
F. da Costa Gomes 1974-1976
A. dos Santos Ramalho Eanes 1976-1986
M. Soares 1986-1996
J. Sampaio 1996-2006
A. Cavaco Silva 2006-2016
M. Rebelo de Sousa since 2016

Portugal History - The Third Republic 3

Portugal History – The Third Republic Part III
Tagged on: