A list of 78 municipal candidates was approved today by the National Political Commission of the PSD, joining 100 names already confirmed.
This marks the third time that Marco Almeida will run for Sintra. He previously campaigned with and without PSD support, leading to his expulsion from the party, though he returned in 2018. Almeida has also served as a councilor and vice-president of the municipality.
Paulo de Morais, a former vice-president of the Porto City Council, currently serves as president of the Civic Front association.
In addition, the current Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Pedro Duarte, announced his candidacy for the Porto City Council a week ago.
Candidates for four other district capitals were also approved: Luís Souto de Miranda in Aveiro, the independent José Manuel Silva seeking re-election in Coimbra, Paulo Xavier in Bragança, and Alda Vaz in Vila Real.
The list does not yet include candidates for Lisbon, where Carlos Moedas has not confirmed his re-election bid, Oeiras, where support is anticipated for the independent and former PSD member Isaltino Morais, and Setúbal, where the potential PSD backing of former communist mayor Maria das Dores Meira has been controversial.
The last set of municipal candidates was approved by the PSD on February 11, which included support for the re-election of former party leader Pedro Santana Lopes for Figueira da Foz City Council.
The CPN, in the PSD, is the statutory body responsible for endorsing candidacies approved by district entities and proposed by council committees.
In total, the PSD now has 178 candidates officially approved to run for mayoral positions in upcoming municipal elections expected to occur between September and October. The party aims to become “the most representative political force in the country.”
Initially, the party planned to announce all candidates by the end of the first quarter, but the call for early legislative elections on May 18 altered this timeline.
News updated at 2:09 PM.
