José Luís Carneiro, candidate for the leadership of the Socialist Party (PS), disclosed over the weekend that he informed the party’s National Committee that they should “vote against the PCP’s motion of rejection regarding the Government program” in order to “cooperate” and “ensure political stability” for the country “in good faith.”
“To create the conditions for it to begin functioning. As for the State Budget, we will wait for the composition of my party’s bodies. As PS leader, the Secretary-General has the duty to listen to the party’s leadership, our MPs, and the parliamentary group,” Carneiro explained during his commentary on CNN Portugal.
Thus far, the former Minister of Internal Administration is the sole candidate for the PS Secretary-General position. He views this candidacy as “a mission,” not fearing the possibility of merely being a transitional leader.
“Transience in political roles is one of the most relevant characteristics. I view my candidacy as a mission and service to the PS aimed at re-establishing it as the largest political party in Portugal, positioning our significant objectives for Portuguese society,” stated Carneiro.
He further asserted his desire to “open the leadership in a shared manner” and expressed that there was “no rush” in advancing the candidacy for the position previously held by Pedro Nuno Santos.
“My desire is to include and share my leadership with anyone willing to participate actively, starting with the municipal elections, which are our first and greatest priority. Anyone who feels they have a mission to fulfill can do so until June 12. I did not speak to any journalists about the candidacy on election night or until the end of Monday. There was no rush; I expressed my availability,” he emphasized.
For now, he admits to having “doubts about the Parliamentary Inquiry Committee” concerning Luís Montenegro and believes the PS must “know how to listen and give voice to the people.”
“We have the duty to understand the message from the Portuguese, understand what they intend to convey, listen, and give a voice to the people. That is the movement I want to create. We must accept with democratic humility that we need to cooperate to ensure political stability and the governance of the country. That is why I could, in the National Committee, say that, in my view, we should make an effort to contribute to this stability,” Carneiro added.
The President of the Republic announced this Monday that he would hear from the PSD, PS, and Chega again on Thursday afternoon, aiming to appoint a prime minister, if possible, on the same day.
When asked whether he intended to meet José Luís Carneiro, candidate for PS Secretary-General, the head of state replied: “I will talk with the delegation that comes from the PS; it’s their choice who they send.”
The coalition led by the current Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro (PSD/CDS-PP), won the early legislative elections on May 18 with over 32% of the votes, without achieving an absolute majority. Together, the two parties elected 89 deputies—87 from the PSD and two from the CDS-PP—which is over a third of the 230 parliamentary seats, but still short of an absolute majority.
With the results from the two emigration circles yet to be finalized, the PS came in second with 23.38% of the votes, securing 58 deputies, the same number as Chega, which garnered a smaller vote share of 22.56%.
Provisional results announced by the Secretariat-General of the Ministry of Internal Administration show IL in fourth place, obtaining 5.53% of the votes and nine deputies, followed by Livre with 4.2% and six deputies.
The CDU (PCP/PEV) received 3.03% of the votes, securing three deputies, all from the PCP. Both the BE, with 2%, and the PAN, with 1.36%, elected one deputy each, as did the JPP from Madeira, which won 0.34% on a national scale.
