The motion of censure under discussion in Parliament will be rejected, but Luís Montenegro has already announced that he will present a "vote of confidence" to Parliament.
Motions of censure and motions of confidence are parliamentary instruments provided for in the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic that serve to assess the legitimacy and continuity of the Government, but with very different objectives.
A motion of censure
is a mechanism through which the Assembly of the Republic can express its lack of confidence in the Government.
A motion of censure can be presented by a parliamentary group or by a minimum of one-tenth of the deputies (23 deputies).
Each party can only present one motion of censure per legislative session (each legislative session begins on September 15th and lasts one year). Chega and PCP can no longer present any motions in this legislative session.
The purpose of presenting a motion of censure is to remove the Government from power.
For this to happen, the motion must be approved by an absolute majority of the deputies in office, that is, it must have at least 116 votes in favor.
If approved, it implies the resignation of the Government and the need to appoint a new executive or, as a last resort, the dissolution of the Assembly and the calling of legislative elections.
A motion of confidence
is a mechanism by which the Government requests a formal vote of support from the Assembly of the Republic, testing its parliamentary support base.
Only the prime minister can present a motion of confidence.
The goal is to strengthen the government's legitimacy and thus resolve political crises.
For a motion of confidence to pass, a simple majority is sufficient (more votes in favor than against).
If approved, the Government will strengthen its position and remain in office.
If rejected, the Government will be politically weakened and will have to submit its resignation to the President of the Republic.
Has a government ever fallen because of a vote of confidence?
Since 1974, 11 motions of confidence have been presented in the Assembly of the Republic.
Of these, only one was rejected, resulting in the resignation of the Government. On December 7, 1977, the then Prime Minister, Mário Soares, presented a motion of confidence which was rejected with 100 votes in favor and 159 against.
These were the other motions of confidence presented and approved:
- January 18, 1980. Presented by Francisco Sá Carneiro. Approved with 128 votes in favor and 113 against.
- November 18, 1980. Presented again by Prime Minister Francisco Sá Carneiro. Approved with 132 votes in favor and 87 against.
- January 23, 1981. Presented by Francisco Pinto Balsemão. Approved with 133 votes in favor and 97 against.
- September 19, 1981. Presented again by Pinto Balsemão. Approved with 126 votes in favor and 88 against.
- June 23, 1983. Presented by Mário Soares. Approved with 161 votes in favor and 67 against.
- June 7, 1984. Mário Soares again. Approved with 161 votes in favor and 74 against.
- June 24, 1986. Presented by Aníbal Cavaco Silva. Approved with 108 votes in favor, 93 against, and 44 abstentions.
- April 18, 2002. Presented by José Manuel Durão Barroso. Approved with 119 votes in favor and 111 against.
- July 29, 2004. Presented by Pedro Santana Lopes. Approved by 119 votes in favor and 111 against.
- July 25, 2013. Presented by Pedro Passos Coelho. Approved with 132 votes in favor and 98 against.
Has any government ever fallen because of a motion of censure?
In the last 50 years of democracy, 35 motions of censure have been voted on. The PCP's motion presented to Luís Montenegro's government, which is being debated this Wednesday, is the 36th.
The only time a motion of censure was approved was in 1987. Cavaco Silva's minority government fell after the PRD presented a motion of censure. In the elections that followed, the PSD won an absolute majority.
There was another government that fell due to parliamentary action, but not because of a motion of censure. This happened, for example, in 2015. Eleven days after taking office, the second government led by Pedro Passos Coelho was brought down after the Socialist Party (PS) presented a motion rejecting the government's program, with 123 votes in favor from the Socialists, Left Bloc (BE), Portuguese Communist Party (PCP), Green Party (PEV), and People-Animals-Nature Party (PAN).
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