“I have been in Porto for a long time, listening to people who like me, and I know Porto will forgive me because this is a decision for Portugal. As I walk around Porto, I see people appreciate Manuel Pizarro, a politician who doesn’t just show up during elections and has never given up on Porto,” stated Vitorino Silva.
Leader of the ‘Porto a bom Porto’ movement and founder of Reagir, Incluir e Reciclar (RIR), Vitorino Silva had announced his candidacy for the Porto City Hall on January 31. He was the fourth to declare his candidacy out of the total 11 currently announced for the presidency.
“I am not abandoning Porto; my efforts will support Manuel Pizarro. This will be vote by vote. I feel the people respect Manuel Pizarro and that his campaign shares many ideas with mine,” he noted.
After discussing with RIR’s leadership, without disclosing other meetings he had, Vitorino Silva added, “Manuel Pizarro called me; I reflected and yes, I will join him on the ground.”
“He is well-prepared. It’s a winning campaign. I know him very well. ‘Porto a bom Porto’ will help him make history,” he continued.
Lusa reached out to Manuel Pizarro’s campaign for comments on Vitorino Silva’s support, but they declined to respond.
Tino de Rans also explained the timing of the decision, considering the upcoming municipal and presidential elections.
“Running for President of the Republic would come too soon. People are expecting me to run for President,” he emphasized.
Candidates for the Porto City Hall include Manuel Pizarro (PS), Diana Ferreira (CDU), Nuno Cardoso (Porto Primeiro movement), Aníbal Pinto (Nova Direita), Pedro Duarte for the ‘O Porto Somos Nós’ coalition (PSD/IL/CDS-PP), Sérgio Aires (BE), current vice president Filipe Araújo (Fazer à Porto movement), António Araújo (Porto à Porto movement), Alexandre Guilherme Jorge (Volt), and Hélder Sousa (Livre).
The current executive is composed of six members from Rui Moreira’s independent movement, three from PS, two from PSD, one from CDU, and one from BE.
Local elections are expected to take place between the end of September and the beginning of October.
