The Portuguese president, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, hasn’t ruled out the possibility of early elections between May 11 and 18, should the government’s motion of confidence be rejected by Parliament. This revelation came during a media briefing in Viseu, northern Portugal, following a session in the unicameral Assembly of the Republic, where a motion of no confidence against the government and Prime Minister Luís Montenegro was rejected, and a motion of confidence was announced.
Rebelo de Sousa suggested that if the Council of Ministers convenes on Friday and approves the motion of confidence, it’s possible that the initiative will be sent to Parliament on the same day. He speculated that Parliament might then schedule the debate and vote for the following Wednesday. The president’s comments were made against the backdrop of a controversy surrounding Spinumviva, a company founded by Montenegro before he took office, which has received payments from other companies where the politician had previously worked. This issue has led to two motions of no confidence being voted on in Parliament over the past two weeks, both of which were rejected, with the most recent one being rejected today.
The controversy surrounding Montenegro has sparked intense debate, with the ultraright Chega party and the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) having sponsored the motions of no confidence. In the event of a confidence vote, a simple majority is required for both approval and rejection. However, the numbers don’t seem to be in Montenegro’s favor, as the second and third-largest parliamentary forces, the Socialist Party and Chega, have indicated they will vote against the motion, which collectively hold 128 seats out of the 230 in Parliament. Should the government lose the confidence vote, it will be up to the president to decide whether to dissolve Parliament and call for elections.
Rebelo de Sousa described the entire process as “very rapid” and indicated that if the motion of confidence is ultimately rejected, he will meet with the parties the following day, as well as with the Council of State, canceling a scheduled trip to Estonia. After consulting with the parties and the Council of State, an advisory body to the Presidency, he noted that the “first possible date” for early elections would be between May 11 and 18. When asked if his comments implied that he was leaning towards calling early elections, the president stated that he needs to work with “all scenarios.”
“There’s a scenario where the motion of confidence is approved, which would mean, depending on the debate and its implications, that there would be a combination of votes that would allow it, but that doesn’t seem possible now,” he said. “Based on today’s debate, if that’s not possible, then I have the obligation to consider the alternative.” In essence, Rebelo de Sousa is keeping all options on the table, weighs the implications of each possible outcome, and prepares for the potential consequences of the government losing the confidence vote. As the situation continues to unfold, it remains to be seen how the events will transpire, but one thing is clear – the fate of the government hangs in the balance, and the Portuguese people are watching with bated breath.