Government of Portugal

Government of Portugal
Portuguese: Governo de Portugal
Central government
Government logo
Overview
Established	24 September 1834; 190 years ago (1834-09-24)
State	Portuguese Republic
Leader	Prime Minister
Appointed by	President of the Republic
Main organ	Council of Ministers
Ministries	17
Responsible to	Assembly of the Republic
Headquarters	Official Residence of the Prime Minister Estrela, Lisbon
Website	portugal.gov.pt

The Government of Portugal, also referred to as the Government of the Portuguese Republic, the Portuguese Government or simply the Government, is one of the four sovereignty bodies [pt] of the Portuguese Republic, together with the President of the Republic, the Assembly of the Republic and the courts. It is both the body of sovereignty that conducts the general politics of the country and the superior body of the Portuguese public administration.^[1]

The term "constitutional government" or simply "government" also refers to the team of ministers and its period of management under one prime minister. This concept is similar to an "administration" in the parlance of a presidential republic or to a "collective ministry" in the parlance of some Commonwealth countries. Each government in this sense is identified by a roman number, with the present one (formed in April 2024) being the XXIV Constitutional Government of Portugal since the establishment of the current democratic regime, in 1976.^[2]

Composition

The Government comprises the prime minister, ministers and secretaries of state (junior ministers). Governments may also include one or more deputy prime ministers and deputy secretaries of state.^[3] Each minister usually heads a ministry and has assigned to him or her one or more secretaries of state, while certain governments may also assign one or more deputy ministers, as well.^[4]

Formation

After the elections for the Assembly of the Republic or the resignation of the previous government, the president listens to the parties in the Assembly of the Republic and invites someone to form a government.

The prime minister chooses members of the council of ministers. Then the president swears in the prime minister and the Government.^[4]

Functions

The Government has political, legislative and administrative functions. These include, among other things, the power to negotiate with other countries or international organizations, to submit bills to the Assembly of the Republic, to issue decrees and to take administrative choices.

The Government guides its actions by the governmental program and implements it in the state budget that is submitted to the Assembly of the Republic each year, in the laws that it proposes, in the decrees that it issues in the Portuguese Council of Ministers, and in individual decisions made by its members.

There are no guarantees that the government will stick to its government program, but if it fails to do so, its actions will be judged by the citizens in forthcoming elections.

The Government may also be questioned by the other three sovereignty organs: the president of the republic, the Assembly of the Republic and the courts. The president may veto governmental decrees and a government bill may fail to pass in the Assembly of the Republic, where a motion of no confidence may be approved.^[4]

The Council of Ministers

Main article: Council of Ministers (Portugal)

The Council of Ministers is a collegial executive body within the Government of Portugal. It is usually presided over by the prime minister, but the president of the republic can preside over it at the prime minister's request. Besides the prime minister, the vice prime ministers and all ministers are members of the Council of Ministers. When the prime minister finds it fit, certain secretaries of state can also attend its meetings, but without being able to vote.^[5]

List of governments (since 1976)

Constitutional Governments of Portugal^[6]

Gov[7]	Start[7]	End[7]	Prime minister[7]		Parties in Government	Notes and main political events
I	1976-07-23	1978-01-23		Mário Soares	PS	1976 election (34.9%), minority government, motion of no confidence
II	1978-01-23	1978-08-29			PS + CDS	Coalition government, President Ramalho Eanes dismisses the government
III	1978-08-29	1978-11-22		Alfredo Nobre da Costa	Independent	Nobre da Costa is appointed by President Ramalho Eanes to form government, government resigned
IV	1978-11-22	1979-07-07		Carlos Mota Pinto		Mota Pinto is appointed by President Ramalho Eanes to form government, prime-minister resigns
V	1979-08-01	1980-01-03		Maria de Lurdes Pintasilgo		Lurdes Pintasilgo is appointed by President Ramalho Eanes to form a caretaker government
VI	1980-01-03	1981-01-09		Francisco Sá Carneiro, Diogo Freitas do Amaral[a]	AD (PSD + CDS + PPM)	1979 election (45.3%) 1980 election (47.6%), Sá Carneiro's death, Diogo Freitas do Amaral (CDS) as interim prime-minister
VII	1981-01-09	1981-09-04		Francisco Pinto Balsemão		Pinto Balsemão is chosen by his party (PSD) to replace Sá Carneiro, prime-minister resigned
VIII	1981-09-04	1983-07-09				Pinto Balsemão is chosen by his party to become prime-minister again, prime-minister resigned
IX	1983-07-09	1985-11-06		Mário Soares	PS + PSD	1983 election (36.1% + 27.2%), coalition government (Central Bloc)
X	1985-11-06	1987-08-17		Aníbal Cavaco Silva	PSD	1985 election (29.9%), minority government, motion of no confidence
XI	1987-08-17	1991-10-31				1987 election (50.2%)
XII	1991-10-31	1995-10-25				1991 election (50.6%)
XIII	1995-10-28	1999-10-25		António Guterres	PS	1995 election (43.8%), minority government
XIV	1999-10-25	2002-04-06				1999 election (44.1%), minority government, prime-minister resigned
XV	2002-04-06	2004-07-17		Durão Barroso	PSD + CDS–PP	2002 election (40.2% + 8.7%), coalition government, prime-minister resigned
XVI	2004-07-17	2005-03-12		Santana Lopes		Santana Lopes nominated after Durão Barroso's resignation, parliament dissolved by President Jorge Sampaio, new election called
XVII	2005-03-12	2009-10-26		José Sócrates	PS	2005 election (45.0%)
XVIII	2009-10-26	2011-06-20				2009 election (36.6%), minority government, government resigned
XIX	2011-06-20	2015-10-30		Pedro Passos Coelho	PSD + CDS–PP	2011 election (38.7% + 11.7%), coalition government
XX	2015-10-30	2015-11-26			PàF (PSD + CDS–PP)	2015 election (38.6%), minority government, motion of no confidence
XXI	2015-11-26	2019-10-26		António Costa	PS	President Cavaco Silva appoints the 2015 election second largest party leader, minority government
XXII	2019-10-26	2022-03-30				2019 election (36.3%), minority government, budget rejection
XXIII	2022-03-30	2024-04-02				2022 election (41.4%), prime-minister resigned
XXIV	2024-04-02	Incumbent		Luís Montenegro	AD (PSD + CDS–PP)	2024 election (28.8%), minority government

See also

• Cabinet (government)
• Ministry (collective executive)
• Politics of Portugal

Notes

1. Interim prime minister between 4 December 1980 and 9 January 1981.

References

1. "Órgãos de soberania". Diário da República. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
2. "Diário da República n.º 65/2024, Suplemento, Série I de 2024-04-02". Diário da República. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
3. "Primeiro-Ministro". Diário da República. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
4. "Governo". Diário da República. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
5. "Conselho de Ministros". Diário da República. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
6. "Consulta de Governos Anteriores". XXIV Constitutional Government website. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
7. "Governo de Portugal". portugal.gov.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2020-07-25.

External links

• Official website