The PSD/Açores has set its electoral goal to retain victory in the upcoming elections, aiming to lead the majority of municipal councils, municipal assemblies, and parish assemblies. The party seeks to continue its leadership of the Association of Municipalities of the Autonomous Region of the Azores (AMRAA) and the Azores Delegation of the National Association of Parishes (ANAFRE), announced the social-democratic leader during a press conference in Ponta Delgada.
The meeting with journalists also served to present the conclusions from the Regional Political Commission (CPR) session held today on São Miguel Island, where the PSD/Açores candidates for 17 of the 19 municipal councils across the archipelago were confirmed.
Pedro Nascimento Cabral, the current Mayor of Ponta Delgada, is seeking re-election for a second term, while Jaime Vieira, a PSD deputy in the Azorean parliament, is running for Ribeira Grande. Other candidates include Eugénia Leal for Vila Franca do Campo, Ruben Cabral for Lagoa, Francisco Gaspar for Povoação, and António Miguel Soares for Nordeste.
The candidates list also features Daniel Gonçalves for Santa Maria, Luísa Barcelos for Angra do Heroísmo, and Vânia Ferreira (current mayor) for Praia da Vitória, alongside António Reis, who is standing again in Santa Cruz da Graciosa.
For the Madalena council, PSD is again supporting Catarina Manito (current president) and Luis Filipe Silva (current president of São Roque do Pico), with Nuno Monteiro running for Lajes do Pico, while Carlos Ferreira is standing for re-election in Horta.
The lineup of candidates is completed by António Viegas for Calheta, Daniel Miranda for Santa Cruz das Flores, and Bruno Gonçalves for Lajes das Flores in this year’s municipal elections.
In the village of Corvo, the smallest Azorean island, they will present a “unique candidacy,” with the lead candidate to be announced “in due course.” For the Velas council in São Jorge, the PSD will support the CDS-PP candidate for the municipal council.
“The selection process for the PSD/Açores candidates was extensively participatory, involving local and island structures of the party,” affirmed the Azorean social-democratic leader.
José Manuel Bolieiro, also the President of the Regional Government coalition (PSD, CDS-PP, and PPM), emphasized that “local governments are strategic partners in regional development” and argued that “valuing Local Power allows for tackling inequalities, promoting social and territorial cohesion, population retention, and wealth generation.”
He highlighted that the Regional Government “has promoted an unprecedented technical and financial collaboration and cooperation with Local Power” in the archipelago’s history, “based on a legal framework that ensures certainty, predictability, and equity in the cooperation process, allowing local governments to receive support from the Region for their territories’ development.”
In 2021, the PSD/Açores won the local elections with 44.7% of the vote, taking control of eight municipal councils and 73 parish assemblies.
This year, the municipal elections are expected to take place between September and October.
