Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has appointed centre-right politician Luís Montenegro as prime minister following his victory in parliamentary elections on March 10. This was announced by the country’s presidency. Rebelo de Sousa invited the head of the center-right Democratic Alliance (AD) to form a minority government. The 51-year-old lawyer succeeds the socialist António Costa, who took over the office at the end of 2015.
Although the AD narrowly won the parliamentary election, it clearly missed a government majority. Montenegro has repeatedly said it will not negotiate with the right-wing populists Chega. On Wednesday he reiterated that the AD was ready to govern alone.
Right-wing populists were able to quadruple their seats
After all votes were counted, the AD won 80 seats in the 230-seat legislature, followed by the Socialists with 78 seats and Chega, which was founded just five years ago, with 50 seats, quadrupling its parliamentary representation. An AD government will therefore have to rely on agreements in parliament with the Chega or the left wing in order to pass legislative proposals, which makes it potentially unstable. The Chega leader and former TV sports commentator André Ventura has demanded government participation in return for his support.
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Election in Portugal: Portugal is moving to the right
Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has appointed centre-right politician Luís Montenegro as prime minister following his victory in parliamentary elections on March 10. This was announced by the country’s presidency. Rebelo de Sousa invited the head of the center-right Democratic Alliance (AD) to form a minority government. The 51-year-old lawyer succeeds the socialist António Costa, who took over the office at the end of 2015.
Although the AD narrowly won the parliamentary election, it clearly missed a government majority. Montenegro has repeatedly said it will not negotiate with the right-wing populists Chega. On Wednesday he reiterated that the AD was ready to govern alone.