Electoral results of the Portuguese Communist Party
Encyclopedia
This is a table of the electoral results of the Portuguese Communist Party
. Despite the Party had been founded in 1921, the party experienced little time as a legal party, being forced into clandestinity after a military coup in 1926
. In the following decades, Portugal
was dominated by the dictatorial regime led by António Oliveira Salazar, that kept the Party illegal. Although the regime allowed elections during some periods, the Party, given its illegal status, could never legally enter the electoral process and the heavy manipulation of the electoral results never allowed a democratic candidate to win. The regime would only end in 1974, with the Carnation Revolution
, that implemented broad democratic changes in the country.
Since then, four types of elections are held with different periodicity. The head of state
, the President of the Republic
, is elected for a five-year term, the Parliament is elected for a four-year term, like the municipal administrations, that since 1985, are also elected for a four-year term. Azores
and Madeira
elect a regional parliament each four years. Along with these, European elections are also held with a periodicity of five years since the country joined the European Union in 1986.
Since the revolution, the Party participated in every election, from the late 1970s until 1987, it ran in coalition with the Portuguese Democratic Movement
in the United People Alliance
(APU). In 1987, the APU was disbanded and since then, the Party participated in coalition with the Ecologist Party "The Greens" inside the Unitarian Democratic Coalition
. The peak of the Party's electoral influence was from the Carnation Revolution until the early 1980s, since then, and mainly after the fall of the Socialist bloc in eastern Europe
, the Party's electoral success was reduced, however, it still keeps a presence in the Parliament and still holds the presidency of 32 municipalities and several parishes.
Note:
Note:
Coalitions Info:
Further notes:
Notes:
In English:
Portuguese Communist Party
The Portuguese Communist Party is a major left-wing political party in Portugal. It is a Marxist-Leninist party, and its organization is based upon democratic centralism. The party also considers itself to be patriotic and internationalist....
. Despite the Party had been founded in 1921, the party experienced little time as a legal party, being forced into clandestinity after a military coup in 1926
28th May 1926 coup d'état
The 28 May 1926 coup d'état, sometimes called 28 May Revolution or, during the period of Estado Novo , National Revolution , was a military action that put an end to the unstable Portuguese First Republic and initiated the Ditadura Nacional , later, renamed the Estado Novo, an authoritarian...
. In the following decades, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
was dominated by the dictatorial regime led by António Oliveira Salazar, that kept the Party illegal. Although the regime allowed elections during some periods, the Party, given its illegal status, could never legally enter the electoral process and the heavy manipulation of the electoral results never allowed a democratic candidate to win. The regime would only end in 1974, with the Carnation Revolution
Carnation Revolution
The Carnation Revolution , also referred to as the 25 de Abril , was a military coup started on 25 April 1974, in Lisbon, Portugal, coupled with an unanticipated and extensive campaign of civil resistance...
, that implemented broad democratic changes in the country.
Since then, four types of elections are held with different periodicity. The head of state
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
, the President of the Republic
President of the Republic
The President of the Republic is a title used for heads of government or heads of state in some republics:*President of Argentina, the Presidente de la República Argentina* President of Brazil, the Presidente da República Federativa do Brasil...
, is elected for a five-year term, the Parliament is elected for a four-year term, like the municipal administrations, that since 1985, are also elected for a four-year term. Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
and Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
elect a regional parliament each four years. Along with these, European elections are also held with a periodicity of five years since the country joined the European Union in 1986.
Since the revolution, the Party participated in every election, from the late 1970s until 1987, it ran in coalition with the Portuguese Democratic Movement
Portuguese Democratic Movement
The Portuguese Democratic Movement / Democratic Electoral Commissions was one of the most important organizations of the democratic opposition to the Portuguese fascist regime...
in the United People Alliance
United People Alliance
The United People Alliance , was an electoral and political coalition between the Portuguese Communist Party and the Portuguese Democratic Movement...
(APU). In 1987, the APU was disbanded and since then, the Party participated in coalition with the Ecologist Party "The Greens" inside the Unitarian Democratic Coalition
Unitarian Democratic Coalition
The Democratic Unity Coalition is an electoral and political coalition between the Portuguese Communist Party and the Ecologist Party "The Greens"...
. The peak of the Party's electoral influence was from the Carnation Revolution until the early 1980s, since then, and mainly after the fall of the Socialist bloc in eastern Europe
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
, the Party's electoral success was reduced, however, it still keeps a presence in the Parliament and still holds the presidency of 32 municipalities and several parishes.
Results in parliamentary elections
| Results in Parliamentary Elections (year links to election page) |
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| Year | Coalition | Votes | % | Mandates | ||||
| 1976 Portuguese legislative election, 1976 The Portuguese legislative election of 1976 took place on April 25, exactly one year after the previous election, and two years after the Carnation Revolution... |
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| 1979 Portuguese legislative election, 1979 The Portuguese legislative election of 1979 took place on December 2. The last election, three and a half years before, in April 1976, was won by the Socialist Party under the lead of Mário Soares, who became the Prime-Minister of the 1st Constitutional government after the revolution... |
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| 1980 Portuguese legislative election, 1980 The Portuguese legislative election of 1980 took place on October 5.In January 1980, the Democratic Alliance, which had won the previous election, on December 2 of 1979, entered office with Francisco Sá Carneiro leading the government... |
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| 1983 Portuguese legislative election, 1983 The Portuguese legislative election of 1983 took place on April 25. The last election, in October 1980 had been won by a right-wing coalition, the Democratic Alliance and Francisco Sá Carneiro had retained office as Prime Minister with an increased majority... |
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| 1985 Portuguese legislative election, 1985 The Portuguese legislative election of 1985 took place on October 6. In June of the same year, the former Prime-Minister, Mário Soares, had resigned from the job due to the lack of parliamentary support, the government was composed by a coalition of the two major parties, the center-right Social... |
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| 1987 Portuguese legislative election, 1987 The Portuguese legislative election of 1987 took place on July 19. In the last election, in 1985, the Social Democratic Party had achieved a relative majority, thing that made its government very weak, managing to survive in coalition with the Democratic Social Center and the Democratic Renovator... |
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| 1991 Portuguese legislative election, 1991 The Portuguese legislative election of 1991 took place on October 6. The Social Democratic Party, under the lead of Cavaco Silva, won a historic third term and won with an absolute majority for the second consecutive turn, achieving a higher share than in the previous election, losing, however, 13... |
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| 1995 Portuguese legislative election, 1995 The Portuguese legislative election of 1995 took place on October 1. The Socialist Party defeated the Social Democratic Party under the lead of António Guterres, elected some months before, but missed the absolute majority by 4 MPs. The Social Democratic party under the lead of Fernando Nogueira... |
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| 1999 Portuguese legislative election, 1999 The Portuguese legislative election of 1999 took place on October 10. The Socialist Party was aiming a second term under the lead of António Guterres, in the end the Socialist Party won the election, but missed what would be an historical absolute majority for the party by only one MP.The Social... |
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| 2002 Portuguese legislative election, 2002 The Portuguese legislative election of 2002 took place on March 17. These elections were called after the resignation of the former Prime-Minister, António Guterres after a defeat of the Socialist Party in the local election of 2001... |
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| 2005 Portuguese legislative election, 2005 The Portuguese legislative election of 2005 took place on February 20. These elections were called after the decision of President Jorge Sampaio on November 30, 2004 to dissolve the Parliament as an answer to the political instability caused by the government led by Pedro Santana Lopes in... |
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| 2009 Portuguese legislative election, 2009 Legislative elections in Portugal were held on 27 September 2009 to renew all 230 members of the Assembly of the Republic. The Socialist Party, led by incumbent Prime Minister José Sócrates, won the largest number of seats, but didn't repeat the overall majority they gained in 2005.The Socialist... |
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| 2011 Portuguese legislative election, 2011 A general election was held in Portugal on 5 June 2011 to elect all 230 members of the Assembly of the Republic. Pedro Passos Coelho led the center-right Social Democratic Party to victory over the Socialist Party, led by incumbent Prime Minister José Sócrates... |
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Note:
- In 1991 the overall number of MPs changed from the original 250 to 230.
Results in local elections
| Results in Local Elections (year links to election page) |
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| Year | Coalition | Votes | % | Mandates | ||||
| 1976 Portuguese local election, 1976 The Portuguese local election of 1976 took place on December 12. This was the first local election in Portugal. The democratic revolution of 1974 introduced the concept of democratic local power, that should be exerted by the citizens in their towns and cities.... |
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| 1979 Portuguese local election, 1979 The Portuguese local election of 1979 took place on December 16. This was the second local election in Portugal since the democratic revolution of 1974 introduced the concept of democratic local power.... |
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| 1982 Portuguese local election, 1982 The Portuguese local election of 1982 took place on December 12. This was the third local election in Portugal since the democratic revolution of 1974 introduced the concept of democratic local power.... |
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| 1985 Portuguese local election, 1985 The Portuguese local election of 1985 took place on December 15. This was the fourth local election in Portugal since the democratic revolution of 1974 introduced the concept of democratic local power.... |
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| 2005 Portuguese local election, 2005 The Portuguese local election of 2005 took place on October 9. The election consisted of three separate elections in the 308 Portuguese municipalities, the election for the Municipal Chambers, whose winner is elected mayor, another election for the Municipal Assembly and a last one for the... |
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Results in European Parliament elections
| Results in European Elections (year links to election page) |
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| Year | Coalition | Votes | % | Mandates | ||||
| 1987 European Parliament election, 1987 (Portugal) The European Parliament election of 1987 in Portugal took place on 19 July 1987. It was the election of all 24 MEPs representing the Portugal constituency for the remainder of the 1984-1989 term of the European Parliament... |
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| 1989 European Parliament election, 1989 (Portugal) The European Parliament election of 1989 in Portugal was the election of MEP representing Portugal constituency for the 1989-1994 term of the European Parliament. It was part of the wider 1989 European election... |
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| 1994 European Parliament election, 1994 (Portugal) The European Parliament election of 1994 in Portugal was the election of MEP representing Portugal constituency for the 1994-1999 term of the European Parliament. It was part of the wider 1994 European election... |
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| 1999 European Parliament election, 1999 (Portugal) The European Parliament election of 1999 in Portugal was the election of MEP representing Portugal constituency for the 1999-2004 term of the European Parliament. It was part of the wider 1999 European election... |
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| 2004 European Parliament election, 2004 (Portugal) The European Parliament election of 2004 in Portugal was the election of MEP representing Portugal constituency for the 2004-2009 term of the European Parliament. It was part of the wider 2004 European election... |
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| 2009 European Parliament election, 2009 (Portugal) The European Parliament election of 2009 in Portugal was the election of the delegation from Portugal to the European Parliament in 2009.The lists are headed by*Socialist Party : Vital Moreira... |
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- In 2004, after the enlargement of the European UnionEnlargement of the European UnionThe Enlargement of the European Union is the process of expanding the European Union through the accession of new member states. This process began with the Inner Six, who founded the European Coal and Steel Community in 1952...
, the number of MEPs elected by PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
decreased from the original 25 to 24.
Coalitions Info:
- The FEPUElectoral Front United PeopleThe Electoral Front United People , was an electoral front of the Portuguese Communist Party, the Portuguese Democratic Movement/Electoral Democratic Commissions and the People's Socialist Front formed in order to participate in the Portuguese local election of 1976. The FEPU got 737,586 votes ....
was composed of the PCP, the MDP/CDE and the FSP. - The APUUnited People AllianceThe United People Alliance , was an electoral and political coalition between the Portuguese Communist Party and the Portuguese Democratic Movement...
was composed of the PCP and the MDP/CDE, later it included the PEV. - The CDUUnitarian Democratic CoalitionThe Democratic Unity Coalition is an electoral and political coalition between the Portuguese Communist Party and the Ecologist Party "The Greens"...
is composed of the PCP, the PEV and the IDDemocratic Intervention (Portugal)The Democratic Intervention is a Portuguese left-wing political association founded in order to promote and defend socialist ideas in Portugal. Members of it take part as independents in the electoral alliance Unitarian Democratic Coalition, along with the Portuguese Communist Party and the...
Further notes:
- The election of 1975 was not a regular legislative election, but instead was an election of a Constituent AssemblyConstituent assemblyA constituent assembly is a body composed for the purpose of drafting or adopting a constitution...
. - The Local election results report the voting for the Municipal ChambersMunicipal ChambersMunicipal Chambers can refer to:* City and town halls* Câmara Municipal, executive body of a municipality in Portugal and former colonies...
only and don't include occasional coalitions in some municipalities, e.g. in LisbonLisbonLisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, between 1989 and 2001. Voting for the Municipal Assemblies and Parish Assemblies is usually higher (11.7% and 12.0%, respectively, in 2005). - The number of mandates denotes the number of councillors in Local elections, MPs in Parliamentary elections and MEPs in European Parliament elections.
Results in presidential elections
| Results in Presidential Elections (year links to election page) |
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| Year | Candidate supported | Votes | % | Elected? | ||||
| 1976 Portuguese presidential election, 1976 The Portuguese presidential election of 1976 was held on June 27.With a broad base of support that comprised the center-left and the center-right, Ramalho Eanes won the election on the first round and became the first elected President of Portugal after the Carnation Revolution.The Portuguese... |
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| 1980 Portuguese presidential election, 1980 The Portuguese presidential election of 1980 was held on December 7.Incumbent president General Ramalho Eanes gathered the support of the Socialist Party, despite the objection of their leader, Mário Soares, and also the support of the Portuguese Communist Party, whose candidate, Carlos Brito,... |
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| 1986 Portuguese presidential election, 1986 The Portuguese presidential election of 1986 was held on January 26, the second round took place on February 16.This was closest presidential election ever held in Portugal and was won by the Socialist Mário Soares, who initially had no more than 5% at opinion polls.In first round was easily won by... |
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| 1991 Portuguese presidential election, 1991 The Portuguese presidential election of 1991 was held on January 13.The re-election of the hugely popular Mário Soares was never in doubt, specially after the then-ruling PSD, led by prime-minister Aníbal Cavaco Silva announced its support... |
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| 1996 Portuguese presidential election, 1996 The Portuguese presidential election of 1996 was held on January 14.Incumbent president Mário Soares was constitutionally barred from a third term.... |
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| 2001 Portuguese presidential election, 2001 The Portuguese presidential election of 2001 was held on January 12.The victory of incumbent president Jorge Branco de Sampaio was never in doubt and the turnout was therefore quite low... |
António Simões de Abreu António Simões de Abreu, ComL, known simply by António Abreu is a Portuguese engineer and politician.He joined the Portuguese Communist Party in 1969. From 1969 to 1973 he was an active member of the democratic opposition to the Fascist regime of Marcello Caetano... |
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| 2006 Portuguese presidential election, 2006 The Portuguese presidential election were held on 22 January 2006 to elect a successor to the incumbent President Jorge Sampaio, who was term-limited from running for a third consecutive term by the Constitution of Portugal... |
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| 2011 Portuguese presidential election, 2011 The 2011 Portuguese presidential election was held on January 23, 2011. This election resulted in the re-election of Aníbal Cavaco Silva to a second term as President of Portugal. Turnout in this election was very low, where only 46.52% of the electorate cast their ballots... |
Francisco Lopes Francisco José de Almeida Lopes is a Portuguese politician who, supported by the Communist Party, ran for president in the Portuguese presidential election of 2011.... |
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Notes:
- In 1980, Carlos Brito withdrew in favor of Ramalho Eanes.
- In 1986, the Party's first candidate was Ângelo VelosoÂngelo VelosoÂngelo Veloso was a Portuguese politician.A member of the Portuguese Communist Party since the days of the Estado Novo dictatorial fascist regime of António de Oliveira Salazar, Veloso was imprisoned in Peniche for political views...
, that later withdrew in favor of Salgado ZenhaSalgado ZenhaFrancisco Salgado Zenha, GCL was a Portuguese left-wing politician and lawyer.As a student at the University of Coimbra, he was elected president of the Academic Association of Coimbra, being dismissed some months after because he refused to participate in a demonstration of support to the Estado...
. - In 1986, in the second round, the Party supported Mário SoaresMário SoaresMário Alberto Nobre Lopes Soares, GColTE, GCC, GColL, KE , Portuguese politician, served as Prime Minister of Portugal from 1976 to 1978 and from 1983 to 1985, and subsequently as the 17th President of Portugal from 1986 to 1996.-Family:...
. - In 1996, Jerónimo de Sousa withdrew in favor of Jorge Sampaio.
See also
- Portuguese Communist PartyPortuguese Communist PartyThe Portuguese Communist Party is a major left-wing political party in Portugal. It is a Marxist-Leninist party, and its organization is based upon democratic centralism. The party also considers itself to be patriotic and internationalist....
- History of the Portuguese Communist PartyHistory of the Portuguese Communist PartyThe history of the Portuguese Communist Party , spans a period of more than 85 years, since its foundation in 1921 as the Portuguese section of the Communist International to the present...
- History of PortugalHistory of PortugalThe history of Portugal, a European and an Atlantic nation, dates back to the Early Middle Ages. In the 15th and 16th centuries, it ascended to the status of a world power during Europe's "Age of Discovery" as it built up a vast empire including possessions in South America, Africa, Asia and...
- Carnation RevolutionCarnation RevolutionThe Carnation Revolution , also referred to as the 25 de Abril , was a military coup started on 25 April 1974, in Lisbon, Portugal, coupled with an unanticipated and extensive campaign of civil resistance...
External links
In Portuguese:- Portuguese Communist Party official web site
- History section of the Party's official website
- Avante Festival! official website
- Avante! newspaper online edition
- PCP's short biography by the Carnation Revolution archive center
In English: