“I fully assume responsibility for this defeat. Whoever leads a political project leads that project by taking all the consequences of such leadership. This defeat is, first and foremost, a personal defeat and a result of my political choice,” said today to journalists at his campaign headquarters near the Boavista roundabout.
When asked if he shared the defeat with the current Secretary-General of the PS, José Luís Carneiro, or the predecessor Pedro Nuno Santos, with whom he launched the candidacy, the socialist head of the list said “not at all” was such a scenario possible.
“Both Pedro Nuno Santos, who nominated me as a candidate, and José Luís Carneiro did everything in their power to support this candidacy. The Socialist Party cannot be held responsible for this defeat; this defeat is a defeat of the candidacy in Porto, and the candidacy in Porto is led by me,” he emphasized.
Estimating the defeat by a margin of fewer than two thousand votes, the “smallest margin since democratic local power elections” in Porto, Pizarro further stated he had already congratulated the winner Pedro Duarte (PSD/CDS-PP/IL) “with respect and democratic tolerance,” anticipating that the composition of the council, which he stated has six councilors each from the PS and the coalition PSD/CDS-PP/IL, “will be a new challenge.”
When asked if he is willing to enable Pedro Duarte’s governance, Manuel Pizarro stated that “for now, nothing of the sort is under discussion,” not knowing what he will “enable,” as “there is no proposal to address.”
Faced with persistent questions from journalists, he admitted he would “engage in dialogue, firstly because the municipal executive is a collegial body,” but “people chose a team to govern and a team to be in opposition.”
“We won’t be a blocking force in the council. But we also won’t abandon our ideas, nor will we disrespect the tens of thousands of people from Porto who voted for our ideas for the city,” he asserted.
When asked about the possibility of making ad hoc agreements with Pedro Duarte, he said that “many of these questions are better directed to the future president of the Porto City Council,” acknowledging he would “evaluate case by case,” but rejecting “an abstract commitment for anything, under any conditions,” waiting for “concrete proposals and concrete measures.”
Regarding whether a potential left-front could have secured him a victory in the elections, Pizarro said it “will always remain unknown whether those votes,” potentially gained “in any left coalition would have been lost in other sectors of Porto society,” thus stating “it is not possible” with today’s data “to seriously answer that question.”
“With full sincerity, I think we did what was within our reach and what we were obliged to do, we did it by dialoguing with the people of Porto, with the institutions of Porto, assembling a team of very high quality and conducting a thrilling and very participative election campaign. The results are what they are, the democratic choice of the people of Porto,” he pointed out.
Reiterating that he will take his place as a councilor, he said his immediate future involves presenting himself “tomorrow [today, Monday] at Hospital de São João” to resume his professional activity “because that is how it should be.”
[News updated at 01h25]
