Rita Alarcão Júdice, the Minister of Justice, spoke at a campaign lunch for the AD coalition — consisting of the PSD and CDS — held at the Marialvas Pavilion in Cantanhede, Coimbra district. She arrived accompanied by her personal friend and former CDS leader, Assunção Cristas.
The event was also attended by the former head of the Portuguese Bar Association, José Miguel Júdice, the father of the Justice Minister, and Pedro Santana Lopes, former Prime Minister and PSD president, who arrived around 14:30 to listen to the speeches.
Rita Alarcão Júdice began by addressing political freedom, recounting how her paternal grandfather was imprisoned by the Estado Novo for being a communist, and her father was jailed after the April 25, 1974 revolution for being anti-communist.
“Both were political prisoners. My father and grandfather held different political views, but both had a great love for freedom. I learned this love for freedom, which guides my political actions,” she stated. According to Rita Alarcão Júdice, it is the defense of freedom that drives her to “fight daily for a country free from the radicalism of both the left and right.”
“Moreover, this love for freedom is what I found in this government and under the leadership of Luís Montenegro. We have been a reformist government and want to continue that path. The country needs a centrist government, without giving space to left-wing radicalism or right-wing extremism,” asserted the AD’s top candidate in Coimbra.
She also reflected on her role as Minister of Justice, stating that Luís Montenegro was “the best Prime Minister I could have had.”
“Throughout a year in government, Luís Montenegro never gave me instructions or directions to favor anyone. He never interfered in matters that concern only justice, never manipulated or instrumentalized the Ministry of Justice, and never opposed my choices for ministry leaders, where my criterion has always been technical competence,” she concluded.
The campaign lunch, according to the organizers, gathered approximately 1,500 people and started almost an hour late, primarily due to the attendance surpassing the 1,100 registered for lunch.
Luís Montenegro had to address the crowd before the speeches to request patience.
“Many people showed up without being registered; we are an open party and now have to set up more tables. I ask for your patience; I assume you are hungry — I am too,” said the PSD president.
In the first speech, the Mayor of Cantanhede, Helena Teodósio, confidently predicted that the AD would secure a stronger majority in the upcoming Sunday elections.
“The Portuguese have already recognized the quality of the government in a complex and difficult context,” she maintained before challenging Luís Montenegro for the next legislative term: “I wish to make him aware of the need to modify the criteria of the Local Finance Law, strengthening support for areas fighting depopulation.”
[Story updated at 15:19]
