“We want to grow the parliamentary group, we want to represent districts that we have not represented before, and this is very important because it represents the maturity of a political project, a European green left project that many people feel is missing,” stated Rui Tavares at Cascais Market in the district of Lisbon, where he commenced his electoral campaign for the legislative elections on May 18th.
While distributing flyers, the party leader emphasized that Livre is a left-wing party that “doesn’t retreat a millimeter” on workers’ rights and citizens’ rights and is a left that can talk about freedom.
“Something that the left, in a way, abandoned to be exploited, used, and abused by a right-wing that, truly, one part doesn’t like freedom because if it seized power, they would be the worst authoritarians, and another that believes freedom is just a matter of lower taxes,” he remarked.
In his opinion, a left that resumes talking about freedom can recover tens of thousands of votes that were previously left-wing and shifted to the right in recent elections.
Rui Tavares also noted that a left responsible for offering a government alternative does not confine the state merely to regulation and bureaucratization and understands that the state needs to return to building houses, railways, new transport modes, parks, gardens, and nurseries.
Surrounded by many flags featuring the poppy, the party’s symbol, the spokesperson expressed a desire for more deputies but refrained from specifying how many more, asserting that he does not like to announce targets.
However, in a conversation with a florist whose stall was bustling due to Mother’s Day floral purchases, Rui Tavares hinted he wanted “many poppies on the ballots.”
“We are in May, a month that is good for poppies because they multiply,” he highlighted.
Asked whether he believes Livre’s poppies will multiply on May 18th, the party leader simply stated that there are already numerous poppies throughout the country, as Livre is a party that reaches many people and does not need an introduction.
“Let’s see if we will have as many poppies as those scattered throughout the country at this time of year,” he concluded.
