Left Bloc (Portugal)
Left Bloc Bloco de Esquerda | ||
---|---|---|
Regional Parliaments 2 / 104 | ||
Local government (Mayors) | 0 / 308 | |
Local government (Parishes) | 0 / 3,066 | |
Election symbol | ||
Party flag | ||
Website | ||
www | ||
The Left Bloc (Portuguese: Bloco de Esquerda, pronounced [ˈblɔku ðɨ ɨʃˈkeɾðɐ], BE),[17] colloquially shortened as O Bloco, is a left-wing populist, democratic socialist political party in Portugal founded in 1999. It is currently led by Mariana Mortágua.[18]
History
Formation and early history
The Left Bloc was formed in 1999 by the merger of the
First parliamentary representation
In the
In the 2009 European Parliament election they received 10.73% winning them 3 MEPs. They also surpassed the CDU for the first time in an election. At the subsequent 2009 national election, the party obtained 9.81% of votes and 16 members of parliament in the 230-seat Assembly of the Republic.
The
Renewal, split and recovery
The historical merger of ideologies that gave rise to the Portuguese Left Bloc was a process that lasted sixteen years. Its main actors aged and times changed, which led to an awareness of the need for modernization and realism.
In early 2014, the Left Bloc suffered a split, when elected Left Bloc MEP Rui Tavares, who already in 2011 had become an independent, founded left-ecologist LIVRE party. Left-wing intellectuals who had come together to the Manifesto 3D collective challenged the Left Bloc to converge with LIVRE towards a joined list in the upcoming 2014 European election. Two official meetings in late 2014 and early 2015 however failed with the Left Bloc referring to programmatic differences with Tavares.[22] So while the severe austerity programs under prime minister Passos Coelho did backdrop on the Portuguese political right, the European election in May saw the Socialists and liberal Earth Party
In the 2015 legislative election, the Left Bloc achieved 10.2% of the votes and elected 19 deputies, their best result in legislative elections ever, in what was considered a major upset.[23] On 10 November 2015, Catarina Martins signed an agreement with the Socialist Party that is aimed at identifying convergence issues, while also recognizing their differences.[24] The Bloc supported the minority Socialist Costa Government (2015–2019) with a confidence and supply agreement. The Socialist Party government would be re-elected in 2019, with the Left Bloc returning to opposition. The party voted against the 2022 budget, triggering an election in January of that year. The Left Bloc would lose 14 seats, reducing them to five, and over half of their popular vote from 2019 — tactical voting for the Socialist Party and the Left Bloc's opposition to the budget were blamed. The Socialist Party would be re-elected with a majority government.
On 14 February 2023, Catarina Martins announced she would leave the Left Bloc's leadership.[25] In the 13th Convention of the Left Bloc, on 27 and 28 May 2023, Mariana Mortágua, one of the party's most well known deputies, was elected as the party coordinator with 83% of the votes.[26]
After the resignation of António Costa, the Left Bloc expected to gain seats and increase their voting share.[27] Despite that, in the 2024 legislative election, the Left Bloc achieved a very similar result, keeping their five seats.[28] Following that poor result, and in light of Luís Montenegro's victory, Mariana Mortágua led negotiations with the remaining parties on the left (PS, PCP, LIVRE and PAN) in order to build an alternative to the incoming right-wing government.[29]
Ideology, political position and policies
The Left Bloc rose to prominence "following a successful anti-austerity campaign and its backing by a growing popular social movement."[30] It has been described as "Portugal’s biggest supporter of feminist, gay rights and anti-racist legislation" and been associated with the New Left.[31] It occupies a flexible and moderate position to the left of the Socialist Party (PS).[32] The Bloc has proposed a number of important laws on civil rights and guarantees, including the protection of citizens from racist, xenophobic, and homophobic discrimination, support for same-sex marriage, laws for the protection of workers and anti-bullfighting legislation. These included Portugal's first law on domestic violence, which was then passed in parliament with the support of the Portuguese Communist Party and the Socialist Party. In comparison to the Portuguese Communist Party, the Left Bloc has been described as "more socially libertarian".[31] At present, together with the PS, Left Bloc aims at "building a stable, long-lasting and reliable majority at the Parliament, in order to support the formation and subsequent action of a government committed to the change demanded through the ballot box". This purpose foreshadows changes taking place not only in the Iberian Peninsula but as in all European territory.[33][34][35][36]
The Left Bloc has called for the legalisation of cannabis in Portugal.[37] The party attempted to pass legislation in Parliament regarding cannabis law reform in Portugal in 2013 and 2015, both of which were rejected by the then ruling centre-right coalition government.[38]
In terms of economics the party advocates "greater state intervention in the economy in order to reduce inequalities", such as rises to the minimum wage.[39][40] It has also put forward "many legislative proposals defending salaries, pensions and the welfare state".[41] The party has been described by some sources as being anti-capitalist.[9][10] In September 2019, the party called for the minimum monthly wage to be raised to €650 for both the public and private sectors in January 2020.[42]
Electoral results
Assembly of the Republic
Seats in the Portuguese legislative elections
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/- | Government |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Francisco Louçã | 132,333 | 2.4 (#5) | 2 / 230
|
Opposition | |
2002 | 153,877 | 2.7 (#5) | 3 / 230
|
1 | Opposition | |
2005 | 364,971 | 6.4 (#5) | 8 / 230
|
5 | Opposition | |
2009 | 557,306 | 9.8 (#4) | 16 / 230
|
8 | Opposition | |
2011 | 288,923 | 5.2 (#5) | 8 / 230
|
8 | Opposition | |
2015 | Catarina Martins | 550,945 | 10.2 (#3) | 19 / 230
|
11 | Opposition (2015) |
Confidence and supply | ||||||
2019 | 498,549 | 9.5 (#3) | 19 / 230
|
0 | Opposition | |
2022 | 244,603 | 4.4 (#5) | 5 / 230
|
14 | Opposition | |
2024 | Mariana Mortágua | 282,314 | 4.4 (#5) | 5 / 230
|
0 | Opposition |
Presidential elections
Election | Candidate | Votes | % | # |
---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | Fernando Rosas | 129,840 | 3.00 | 4th |
2006 | Francisco Louçã | 292,198 | 5.32 | 5th |
2011 | Manuel Alegre[a] | 831,838 | 19.74 | 2nd |
2016 | Marisa Matias | 469,814 | 10.12 | 3rd |
2021 | 165,127 | 3.96 | 5th |
European Parliament
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/- |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Miguel Portas | 61,920 | 1.8 (#5) | 0 / 25
|
|
2004 | 167,313 | 4.9 (#4) | 1 / 24
|
1 | |
2009 | 382,667 | 10.7 (#3) | 3 / 22
|
2 | |
2014 | Marisa Matias | 149,764 | 4.6 (#5) | 1 / 21
|
2 |
2019 | 325,450 | 9.8 (#3) | 2 / 21
|
1 | |
2024 | Catarina Martins | TBD | TBD | 0 / 21
|
Local elections
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Mayors | +/- | Councillors | +/- | Assemblies | +/- | Parishes | +/- |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | Francisco Louçã | 61,789 | 1.2 (#6) | 1 / 308
|
6 / 2,044
|
28 / 6,876
|
46 / 34,569
|
||||
2005 | 158,953 | 3.0 (#5) | 1 / 308
|
0 | 7 / 2,046
|
1 | 114 / 6,885
|
86 | 229 / 34,498
|
183 | |
2009 | 164,396 | 3.0 (#6) | 1 / 308
|
0 | 9 / 2,078
|
2 | 139 / 6,946
|
25 | 235 / 34,672
|
6 | |
2013 | João Semedo Catarina Martins |
120,982 | 2.4 (#6) | 0 / 308
|
1 | 8 / 2,086
|
1 | 100 / 6,487
|
39 | 138 / 27,167
|
138 |
2017 | Catarina Martins | 170,040 | 3.3 (#5) | 0 / 308
|
0 | 12 / 2,074
|
4 | 125 / 6,461
|
25 | 213 / 27,019
|
75 |
2021 | 137,560 | 2.8 (#6) | 0 / 308
|
0 | 4 / 2,604
|
8 | 94 / 6,448
|
31 | 162 / 26,797
|
51 |
Regional Assemblies
Region | Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/- | Government |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Azores | 2024 | António Lima | 2,936 | 2.5 (#4) | 1 / 57
|
1 | Opposition |
Madeira | 2023 | Roberto Almada | 3,035 | 1.7 (#8) | 1 / 47
|
1 | Opposition |
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/- | Government |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2000 | 1,387 | 1.4 (#5) | 0 / 52
|
No seats | ||
2004 | 1,022 | 1.0 (#5) | 0 / 52
|
0 | No seats | |
2008 | Zuraida Soares | 2,972 | 3.3 (#4) | 2 / 57
|
2 | Opposition |
2012 | 2,428 | 2.3 (#4) | 1 / 57
|
1 | Opposition | |
2016 | 3,414 | 3.7 (#4) | 2 / 57
|
1 | Opposition | |
2020 | António Lima | 3,962 | 3.8 (#5) | 2 / 57
|
0 | Opposition |
2024 | 2,936 | 2.5 (#4) | 1 / 57
|
1 | Opposition |
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/- | Government |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2004 | Paulo Martinho Martins | 5,035 | 3.7 (#5) | 1 / 68
|
Opposition | |
2007 | 4,186 | 3.0 (#5) | 1 / 47
|
0 | Opposition | |
2011 | Roberto Almada | 2,512 | 1.7 (#9) | 0 / 47
|
1 | No seats |
2015 | 4,849 | 3.8 (#6) | 2 / 47
|
2 | Opposition | |
2019 | Paulino Ascensão | 2,489 | 1.7 (#6) | 0 / 47
|
2 | No seats |
2023 | Roberto Almada | 3,035 | 2.2 (#8) | 1 / 47
|
1 | Opposition |
2024 | TBD | TBD | 0 / 47
|
TBD |
Lists of lead party figures
List of Party Coordinators
Name | Portrait | Constituency | Start | End | Prime Minister | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Francisco Louçã (b. 1956) |
Lisbon | 24 March 1999 | 10 November 2012 | António Guterres (1995–2002) | ||
Durão Barroso (2002–2004) | |||||||
Santana Lopes (2004–2005) | |||||||
José Sócrates (2005–2011) | |||||||
Passos Coelho (2011–2015) | |||||||
2 | João Semedo (1951–2018) |
Porto | 10 November 2012 | 30 November 2014 | |||
Catarina Martins (b. 1973) |
Porto | 28 May 2023 | |||||
3 | António Costa (2015–2024) | ||||||
4 | Mariana Mortágua (b. 1986) |
Lisbon | 28 May 2023 | Incumbent | |||
Luís Montenegro (2024–present) |
List of Parliamentary leaders
- Luís Fazenda (Lisbon): 1999 – 2009
- José Manuel Pureza (Coimbra): 2009 – 2011
- Luís Fazenda (Lisbon): 2011 – 2012
- Pedro Filipe Soares (Aveiro; Lisbon): 2012 – 2024
- Fabian Figueiredo (Lisbon): 2024 – present
List of Members of the Assembly of the Republic
- Mariana Mortágua (Lisbon)
- Fabian Figueiredo (Lisbon)
- Marisa Matias (Porto)
- José Soeiro (Porto)
- Joana Mortágua (Setúbal)
- Mariana Mortágua (Lisbon)
- Pedro Filipe Soares (Lisbon)
- Catarina Martins (Porto) – until September 2023
Isabel Pires – from September 2023 - José Soeiro (Porto)
- Joana Mortágua (Setúbal)
- Mariana Mortágua (Lisbon)
- Pedro Filipe Soares (Lisbon)
- Beatriz Gomes Dias (Lisbon)
- Jorge Costa (Lisbon)
- Isabel Pires (Lisbon)
- Catarina Martins (Porto)
- José Soeiro (Porto)
- Luís Monteiro (Porto)
- Maria Manuel Rola (Porto)
- José Maria Cardoso (Braga)
- Alexandra Vieira (Braga)
- Joana Mortágua (Setúbal)
- Sandra Cunha (Setúbal) – until April 2021
Diana Santos – from April 2021 - Moisés Ferreira (Aveiro)
- Nelson Peralta (Aveiro)
- Ricardo Vicente (Leiria)
- José Manuel Pureza (Coimbra)
- João Vasconcelos (Faro)
- Fabíola Cardoso (Santarém)
- Mariana Mortágua (Lisbon)
- Pedro Filipe Soares (Lisbon)
- Jorge Costa (Lisbon)
- Isabel Pires (Lisbon)
- Jorge Falcato Simões (Lisbon)
- Catarina Martins (Porto)
- José Soeiro (Porto)
- Luís Monteiro (Porto)
- Domicília Costa (Porto) – until July 2017
Maria Manuel Rola – from July 2017 - Jorge Campos (Porto)
- Pedro Soares (Braga)
- Joana Mortágua (Setúbal)
- Sandra Cunha (Setúbal)
- Moisés Ferreira (Aveiro)
- Heitor de Sousa (Leiria)
- José Manuel Pureza (Coimbra)
- João Vasconcelos (Faro)
- Carlos Matias (Santarém)
- Paulino Ascensão (Madeira) – until May 2018
Ernesto Ferraz – from May 2018
- Francisco Louçã (Lisbon) – until October 2012
Helena Pinto – from October 2012 - Ana Drago (Lisbon) – until August 2013
Mariana Mortágua – from August 2013 - Luís Fazenda (Lisbon)
- João Semedo (Porto) – until March 2015
José Soeiro – from March 2015 - Catarina Martins (Porto)
- Mariana Aiveca (Setúbal)
- Pedro Filipe Soares (Aveiro)
- Cecília Honório (Faro) – until June 2015
Eugénia Taveira – from June 2015
- Francisco Louçã (Lisbon)
- Ana Drago (Lisbon)
- Luís Fazenda (Lisbon)
- Helena Pinto (Lisbon)
- Rita Calvário (Lisbon)
- João Semedo (Porto)
- Catarina Martins (Porto)
- José Soeiro (Porto)
- Pedro Soares (Braga)
- Fernando Rosas (Setúbal) – until October 2010
Jorge Costa – from October 2010 - Mariana Aiveca (Setúbal)
- Pedro Filipe Soares (Aveiro)
- José Manuel Pureza (Coimbra)
- Heitor de Sousa (Leiria)
- José Gusmão (Santarém)
- Cecília Honório (Faro)
- Francisco Louçã (Lisbon)
- Luís Fazenda (Lisbon)
- Ana Drago (Lisbon)
- Helena Pinto (Lisbon)
- João Teixeira Lopes (Porto)
- Alda Macedo (Porto)
- Fernando Rosas (Setúbal)
- Mariana Aiveca (Setúbal)
- Francisco Louçã (Lisbon)
- Luís Fazenda (Lisbon)
- João Teixeira Lopes (Porto)
- Francisco Louçã (Lisbon)
- Luís Fazenda (Lisbon)
List of Members of the European Parliament
- Marisa Matias – until March 2024
Anabela Rodrigues – from March 2024 - José Gusmão
- Miguel Portas – until April 2012
Alda Sousa – from April 2012 - Marisa Matias
- Rui Tavares – became independent in June 2011
See also
Notes
- ^ Candidate endorsed by the Socialist Party (PS).
References
- ^ "Mariana Mortágua: De braço direito de Catarina Martins a líder do Bloco de Esquerda". 28 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ "Bloco de Esquerda - Resultados da VII Conferência de Jovens do Bloco de Esquerda". www.bloco.org.
- ^ "Bloco de Esquerda comemora décimo aniversário", Público (newspaper), 28 February 2009, retrieved 21 August 2013
- ISBN 9781136578977.
- ^ a b "Where is Portugal's Radical Left? – Global Politics". 11 February 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
- ^ Wall, Derek (2010), The Rise of the Green Left: Inside the Worldwide Ecosocialist Movement, Pluto Press, p. 97
- ^ "Populism Report Q3 2018" (PDF). Foundation for European Progressive Studies. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- ^ "Portugal's bright outlook offers Europe some hope". Financial Times. 25 August 2019. Archived from the original on 10 December 2022.
The alliance between Mr Costa's Socialist Party (PS) and further left groups such as the anti-establishment Left Bloc was considered tenuous when it was forged in 2015.
- ^ a b Ames, Paul. "António Costa's against-the-odds election triumph". Politico. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ a b "What is the Left Bloc?". esquerda.net. 6 November 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
- ^ "Country profile – Portugal - Euroviews 2014". www.euroviews.eu. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
- ^
- "Risque pays du Portugal : Politique". Société Générale (in French). Retrieved 11 May 2019.
- "Portugal - Political Parties - Elections". perspective.usherbrooke.ca (in French). Retrieved 11 May 2019.
"Portugal : la coalition de droite conserve le pouvoir". perspective.usherbrooke.ca (in French). 26 October 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
Deux autres partis de " gauche " étaient en lice pour les élections. Premièrement, le Bloc de gauche, considéré par le journal The Guardian comme étant une version portugaise du parti politique grec anti-austérité Syriza, a récolté 10,2% des suffrages (8).
- "Portugal, Le paysage politique". BiblioMonde (in French). Retrieved 11 December 2018.
BE, le Bloc des gauches (Bloco da Esquerda) : formation regroupant l'extrême gauche portugaise depuis 1999. Influente dans les milieux intellectuels de la capitale, BE a obtenu 2,7% des voix et 3 députés en mars 2002 (soit un siège de plus qu'en 1999). BE comprend notamment l'Union démocratique populaire (União Democràtica Popular), le Parti socialiste révolutionnaire (Partido Socialista Revolucionario ) et Politica XXI.
. - "When the Socialists came to power in 2015, they won the parliamentary support of two left wing parties, the Left Bloc and the Communists". Reuters. 31 July 2019.
- "Risque pays du Portugal : Politique". Société Générale (in French). Retrieved 11 May 2019.
- ISBN 978-3-86872-000-6.. Euronews. 11 July 2019.
- "As Europe left struggles, Portugal's alliance wins over voters and Brussels". reuters.com. 31 March 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
The unlikely alliance of center-left Socialists and two far-left parties has overcome deep scepticism since it was formed in 2015, achieving stability and maintaining economic recovery at a time of political uncertainty across Europe.
- "Portugal PM says open to new alliance with far left"
- "As Europe left struggles, Portugal's alliance wins over voters and Brussels". reuters.com. 31 March 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
External links
- Official website (in Portuguese)
- Website of the newspaper "Esquerda" (in Portuguese)
- What is the Left Bloc? - Article