Elections and Referendums

The European Parliament is the only body in the European Union that is directly elected. The 751 deputies who sit in it are representatives of the citizens of the 27 member states of the European Union. Portugal currently elects 21 deputies.

It plays an active role in drafting laws that are reflected in citizens' daily lives, for example in terms of environmental protection, consumer rights, equal opportunities, transport, as well as the free movement of labour, capital, services, and goods. Parliament also has the power, together with the Council, to approve the European Union's annual budget.

The following are eligible for the European Parliament

Members of the European Parliament elected in Portugal are:

The mandates are for 5 years.

You can find out more about the European Parliament at www.europarl.europa.eu

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The legitimacy​​ of local authority decisions results from the election of the respective bodies, which are constitutionally enshrined as:

​Local authority bodies are elected by direct universal suffrage, except for the parish council, whose president is the citizen who headed the list with the most votes in the election to the parish assembly. The other members of the executive are elected at the first meeting of the parish assembly, on a proposal from the president.

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Votes are converted into seats in accordance with the proportional representation system and the Hondt method. The number of deputies for each constituency is proportional to the number of citizens registered in it.

The mandate of local authority officeholders is for 4 years. Since 2005, a limit of 3 consecutive mandates has been legally established for the presidents of executive bodies (mayors of municipal councils and parish councils).

The following are eligible for local elections:

The lists of countries whose citizens are recognized as having passive electoral ability are published in the Diário da República. With the publication of Declaration 29/2021, of March 17, Portugal made public the recognition of the passive electoral capacity of the natural citizens of the Member States of the European Union, Brazil, Cape Verde, and the United Kingdom, in the elections for the organs of local authorities.

They shall have active electoral ability, i.e., they may exercise their right to vote in local elections:

The lists of countries whose citizens are recognized as having passive electoral ability are published in the Diário da República. With the publication of Declaration 29/2021, of March 17, Portugal has made public the recognition of active electoral capacity to citizens of the Member States of the European Union, Brazil, and Cape Verde, as well as Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Iceland, Norway, New Zealand, Peru, United Kingdom, Uruguay and Venezuela, in the elections for the organs of local authorities.

According to the Constitution, the President of the Republic "represents the Portuguese Republic, guarantees national independence, the unity of the State and the regular functioning of democratic institutions and is, inherently, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces."

In the election for the President of the Republic, there is only one constituency, based in Lisbon, which corresponds to the total of the electoral college, that is, the universe of citizens with the capacity to vote.

Candidatures are submitted by a minimum of 7 500 and a maximum of 15 000 voters, and the President of the Republic is elected on a single-member list for a term of 5 years.

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The majority electoral system is in force in 2 rounds. The candidate who obtains more than half of the validly cast votes shall be elected, not considering as such blank votes. If none of the candidates gets this number in the first round, there will be a second election, in which only the two most voted candidates compete.

In the elections for President of the Republic, Portuguese origin citizens over 35 years of age may apply.

Portuguese citizens registered in the national territory may vote.

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Voters are also Portuguese citizens living abroad if they are registered on the electoral rolls, as well as citizens of other Portuguese-speaking countries who live in the national territory and benefit from the status of equal political rights, under the terms of an international convention and under conditions of reciprocity, if they are registered as voters in the national territory.

The voting is done in person, except in the cases of early voting, and must be exercised directly by the voter, except for the vote of the disabled persons.

You can find out more about the Presidency of the Republic in www.presidencia.pt.

The Assembly of the Republic is currently composed of 230 deputies, of which 4 being the constituencies of Europe and Outside Europe. 

Deputies are elected by lists submitted by parties, or coalitions of parties, in each constituency (on the Continent one for each administrative district, one constituency for each of the Autonomous Regions, one circle covering the entire territory of the European countries and the other countries), for terms of 4 years, corresponding this period to a Legislature. 

Each Legislature consists of 4 legislative sessions, which begin on September 15 and end on June 15 of the following year and may be extended their work.

The conversion of votes into mandates is done according to the system of proportional representation and the Hondt method. The number of Deputies for each constituency is proportional to the number of citizens registered in it. Deputies represent the whole country and not the constituencies for which they are elected.

Portuguese citizens who are eligible to vote for the Assembly of the Republic. Voters are the Portuguese citizens registered in the electoral register, either in the national territory or abroad, as well as citizens of Brazilian nationality, over 18 years of age and registered in Portugal, who have the status of equal political rights.

The Assembly of the Republic has, among others, competences in the sphere of legislative production, supervision of compliance with the laws and the Constitution and monitoring of the Government's actions. 

You can find out more about the Assembly of the Republic in www.parlamento.pt.

Citizens registered voters in the national territory may be called upon to pronounce directly, by binding premise, on a referendum, by decision of the President of the Republic.

The initiative to propose the holding of a National Referendum belongs to the Assembly of the Republic, to the Government, in matters within their respective competences.

The referendum may also result from an citizens' initiative addressed to the Assembly of the Republic.

The referendum may only concern issues of relevant national interest which must be decided by the Assembly of the Republic or the Government through the approval of an international convention or legislative act.

The questions (maximum of three) must be formulated with objectivity, clarity, and precision, for yes or no answers.

A referendum shall have binding premise only when the number of voters exceeds half of the registered voters.

In the local referendum, the citizens registered voters in the local authority where the initiative takes place are called upon to pronounce on issues of relevant local interest that must be decided by the municipal or parish municipal bodies.

As in the national referendum, the local referendum will fall on a single matter. The questions (maximum three) must be formulated with objectivity, clarity, and precision, for yes or no answers. A referendum shall have binding effect only when the number of voters exceeds half of the registered voters.

The initiative for the local referendum is up to the deputies, the municipal or parish assemblies, the city council, and the parish council, depending on whether it is a municipal or parish referendum. The initiative is also up to groups of citizens registered in the respective area.