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2021-01-24T23:49:47.226Z


Portugal elects president in elections marked by covid but also by institutional stability Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has been re-elected President of Portugal RITA FRANĂ A / ZUMA PRESS / CONTACTOPHOTO / Europa Press Yesterday, Portugal elected President of the Republic for the tenth time since 1976 in elections marked by the extreme severity of the pandemic, but also by an exemplary climate of political understanding and institutional collaboration. This is the umpteenth demonstration of


Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has been re-elected President of Portugal RITA FRANĂ A / ZUMA PRESS / CONTACTOPHOTO / Europa Press

Yesterday, Portugal elected President of the Republic for the tenth time since 1976 in elections marked by the extreme severity of the pandemic, but also by an exemplary climate of political understanding and institutional collaboration.

This is the umpteenth demonstration of a way of understanding politics that serves the interests of citizens much more than the dynamics of radical polarization seen elsewhere in Europe.

The conservative Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa won comfortably and, therefore, will repeat his term in a country in a state of absolute emergency.

Portugal registers in proportion to its population - 10,300,000 inhabitants - the highest rate of infections and deaths in the world, according to global data compiled by the University of Oxford.

The health system is on the verge of collapse and controversy has been unleashed after a plan to include politicians among the priority groups when receiving the vaccine.

It should be noted that, given the impossibility of postponing the elections - a legally non-negotiable constitutional reform was required during the state of alarm - the authorities have turned to adopt measures that would allow voting with the greatest possible security.

Basically there have been two: to make voting by mail as easy as possible and to multiply the number of voting tables.

It is a good example of concrete and pragmatic political decisions to safeguard democratic mechanisms despite the circumstances.

The result has been that abstention stood at 62%.

In the previous presidential elections it was 51.34%.

But beyond the conjunctural emergency, these elections have taken place in a climate of notable stability derived, among other things, from a conception of politics as an understanding between different political forces for the good of the country.

This has allowed, for example, a reasonably effective overcoming of the crisis of a decade ago - which precipitated the economic intervention by Brussels - and the great external projection of the country, reflected in the assignment of influential international positions to some of its representatives .

The great popularity enjoyed by Rebelo de Sousa is due - in addition to his outgoing character and a permanent public presence - to the demonstrated collaboration he has had with the Socialist Prime Minister, António Costa, understanding that his conservative political affiliation cannot mean an obstacle to the governance of the country.

An attitude that has found reciprocity in the chief executive.

An exemplary way of conceiving the institutions, their functioning and the legitimate ideological interests that has yielded remarkable results.

Source: elparis

All news articles on 2021-01-24

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