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Sixteen candidacies have been submitted at the Tribunal of Funchal, one less compared to the last election, with the ballot order draw conducted on Tuesday, placing Nova Direita first and Chega last.
In the previous elections held in March last year, the PSD/CDS-PP coalition secured three deputies in the Madeira constituency (52,989 votes), while PS gained two (29,725 votes) and Chega obtained one (26,304 votes).
The AD (PSD/CDS-PP coalition) once again features social democrat Pedro Coelho as the head of the list. Coelho, a former president of the Câmara de Lobos municipality, led the region from 2013 until 2021, when he stepped down to run in the legislative elections on March 10th.
Juntos Pelo Povo (JPP), which has yet to elect any deputies to the Assembly of the Republic, is once again fielding the mayor of Santa Cruz, Filipe Sousa, who suspended his mandate on Monday to run as a candidate.
Filipe Sousa, a founder of this party that began as a citizens’ movement, has governed the municipality since 2013, ending the PSD’s historical hold on the region.
For PS/Madeira, the list is led by former regional leader Emanuel Câmara, who has been the mayor of Porto Moniz in the island’s north since 2013 and is now serving his last term. In the previous elections, Paulo Cafôfo was the top candidate for the socialists.
Chega is fielding last year’s elected candidate, Francisco Gomes, who was previously a PSD deputy in the parliament of Madeira, the Assembly of the Republic, and the Municipal Assembly of Funchal.
The Bloco de Esquerda (BE) has student and activist Diogo Teixeira at the top of their list, and the Democratic Unity Coalition (CDU), which includes PCP and PEV, is led by Herlanda Amado, a municipal deputy in Funchal. Pessoas-Animais-Natureza (PAN) is represented by senior technician Válter Ramos, who was part of the party’s office in the Regional Legislative Assembly.
Also contesting in the Madeira constituency are Iniciativa Liberal (IL), with João Corte Fernandes as the leading candidate; the Portuguese Labour Party (PTP), led by Edgar Silva; the National Democratic Alternative (ADN) with João Abreu; and Marta Sofia heading the ticket for Livre.
The Earth Party Movement (MPT) is fielding Ricardo Camacho, while Ergue-te has António Álvaro Araújo as its candidate. Paulo Azevedo leads Nova Direita (ND), and the Monarchic Popular Party (PPM) is represented by Luís Ornelas. Joana Mendes is the head of the list for Reagir Reciclar Incluir (RIR).
In the upcoming snap legislative elections, 255,796 voters in Madeira are registered to elect six deputies from this autonomous region, an increase from 2024 when 254,553 were registered.
Among the 16 candidacies, the head of the lists repeating are Pedro Coelho (AD), Filipe Sousa (JPP), Francisco Gomes (Chega), and Joana Mendes (RIR).
Nova Direita did not participate in the last election but is now presenting a candidacy for the Madeira constituency, whereas the parties Volt and Nós Cidadãos! are not participating in this constituency this time.
