“Only a more cohesive and prosperous society can truly appreciate and defend the freedom that democracy grants us,” emphasizes the presidential candidate in a video released today to mark the 115th anniversary of the establishment of the Republic in Portugal.
In the video, Henrique Gouveia e Melo notes that the Constitutional Monarchy “fell due to a combination of three factors: significant political instability, international pressure that occurred at a very specific moment in our history, in 1890, with the British ultimatum, and weak economic development that did not produce the necessary satisfaction for the population.”
The candidate for Belém recalls that the First Republic collapsed “exactly for the same reasons the constitutional monarchy did: political instability, 45 governments in 16 years, an international crisis that exacerbated the internal situation (World War I), and weak economic development that did not respond to the population’s needs and development anxieties.”
For the candidate, “the combination of external instability with internal instability is dangerous for the regime.”
“The failure to address the real concerns and problems of the population is dangerous for the regime. Discredit in the political system is dangerous for the regime,” he added, concluding: “When we are united, we do extraordinary things. I wish for a Portugal with everyone and for everyone. Strength to Portugal, strength to the Republic, and strength to Democracy.”
Gouveia e Melo will face principal opponents in the presidential elections in January 2026, including former PSD leader Luís Marques Mendes, the president of Chega, André Ventura, IL MEP João Cotrim de Figueiredo, former socialist leader António José Seguro, historic communist deputy António Filipe, and former national coordinator of BE Catarina Martins.
