“I will manage as I handled the campaign, positively. Most people voted for our program, and therefore, I am very calm,” emphasized the former Minister of Territorial Cohesion.
In Sunday’s municipal elections, the coalition led by Ana Abrunhosa elected five councilors, the alliance Juntos Somos Coimbra (PSD/IL/CDS-PP/Nós, Cidadãos!/PPM/MPT/Volt) also secured five seats, and Chega won one seat.
In a statement, Ana Abrunhosa declined to speculate on post-election scenarios before the official results were released, but she made it clear that “there will be no coalitions.”
“We will manage with dialogue, of course, but I will not form coalitions,” stated the new occupant of Praça 08 de maio, who holds an absolute majority in the Municipal Assembly and does not foresee difficulties in managing the municipality.
The mayor emphasized that “people need to understand that party politics are over.”
“We have to govern to solve people’s problems,” argued the former official, warning that if the opposition “engages in party politics instead of addressing people’s issues, they will be judged.”
The elected president emphasized her commitment to fulfilling her program and governing without hesitation in engaging in discussions and building bridges.
Regarding the distribution of responsibilities, “which will be for the winning coalition,” Ana Abrunhosa indicated that she will take on the urban planning portfolio and hinted that councilor Miguel Antunes will assume the entrepreneurship role, Luís Filipe will handle municipal finances, Ricardo Lino will oversee sports and parishes, and Margarida Mendes Silva will manage culture.
The new mayor also assured that she will move to downtown Coimbra, honoring a promise made in the summer, as soon as she takes office and finds a place to reside.
On urban hygiene, she stated that there needs to be “a comprehensible model” ensuring accountability, monitoring, and oversight of the work done by the parishes.
“Delegation of authority and fund transfers are done with responsibilities. Therefore, money transferred for cleaning is meant for cleaning, not for parties.”
For Ana Abrunhosa, funds for public space requalification should be used “for requalification of public spaces, not for festivities.”
“Therefore, we will take care of the public space as if it were our home,” she said, hoping residents will use municipal platforms to report “what is right and what is wrong” in these areas.
The coalition Avançar Coimbra (PS/Livre/PAN) won the City Council with 42.14% of the votes (five seats), followed by the coalition Juntos Somos Coimbra (PSD/CDS-PP/IL/Nós, Cidadãos!/PPM/Volt/MPT), led by José Manuel Silva, with 37.84% (five seats), and third, Chega (one seat, elected for the first time) with 8.17% of the votes.
