Prime Minister of the Portuguese Republic Primeiro-Ministro da República Portuguesa | |
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Style | His Excellency[1] (formal, diplomatic) Mr. Prime Minister (informal) |
Type | Executive |
Member of | Council of State Council of Ministers European Council |
Residence | São Bento Mansion |
Seat | Lisbon, Portugal |
Appointer | President of Portugal |
Term length | Four years (Parliament can be dissolved sooner); No term limits. |
Constituting instrument | Constitution of the Third Republic |
Inaugural holder | Pedro de Sousa Holstein, Marquess of Palmela |
Formation | 24 September 1834 |
Salary | EUR70,023.52 (2015) (EUR5,001.68/month)[2] |
Website | portugal.gov.pt |
Prime Minister (Portuguese: Primeiro-Ministro; pronounced [p?i'm?j?u mi'ni?t?u]) is the current title of the head of government of Portugal. As head of government, the Prime Minister coordinates the actions of ministers, represents the Government of Portugal to the other bodies of state, is accountable to Parliament and keeps the President informed. The Prime Minister can hold the role of head of government with the portfolio of one or more ministries.
There is no limit to the number of terms a person can serve as Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President of the Republic following legislative elections, after having heard the parties represented in the Parliament. Usually, the person named is the leader of the largest party in the previous election, but there have been exceptions over the years.
Since the Middle Ages, some officers of the Portuguese Crown gained precedence over the others, serving as a kind of prime ministers. Over time, the role of principal officer of the Crown fell upon the chanceler-mor (chancellor), the mordomo-mor (mayor of the palace) and the escrivão da puridade (king's private secretary).
The first modern prime minister of Portugal was Pedro de Sousa Holstein, Marquess of Palmela, who was sworn in on 24 September 1834, as Presidente do Conselho de Ministros (President of the Council of Ministers). In 1911, the official title of the prime minister became Presidente do Ministério (President of the Ministry). In 1933, it became again Presidente do Conselho de Ministros.
The present title Primeiro-Ministro (Prime Minister), attributed to the head of the Government of Portugal, was officially established by the Constitution of 1976 after the revolution of 25 April 1974
The incumbent Prime Minister of Portugal is António Costa, who took office on 26 November 2015 as the 13th Prime Minister of the Third Portuguese Republic.[3] The official residence of the Prime Minister is a mansion next to São Bento Palace, which, in confusion, is also often called "São Bento Palace".
Portuguese Prime Ministers of the Third Portuguese Republic:
Just behind the main building of the Assembly of the Republic, there is a mansion that serves as residence and office for the Prime Minister of Portugal. The mansion, dated from 1877, was built within the garden of the old monastery that held the Portuguese Parliament. It has been the Prime Minister's official residence since 1938, when Salazar moved in. Although it is the official residence of the Prime Minister, not all incumbents have lived in the mansion during their term in office.
António Costa, current Prime Minister, doesn't live in the residence.
As of February 2021, there are seven living former Prime Ministers of Portugal, as seen below.
Francisco Pinto Balsemão
served 1981-1983,
born 1937 (age 83)
Aníbal Cavaco Silva
served 1985-1995,
born 1939 (age 81)
António Guterres
served 1995-2002,
born 1949 (age 71)
José Manuel Barroso
served 2002-2004,
born 1956 (age 64)
Pedro Santana Lopes
served 2004-2005,
born 1956 (age 64)
José Sócrates
served 2005-2011,
born 1957 (age 63)
Pedro Passos Coelho
served 2011-2015,
born 1964 (age 56)
The most recent Prime Minister to die was Diogo Freitas do Amaral (served 1980-1981), on 3 October 2019 aged 78.
O mesmo se aplica ao primeiro-ministro: este ano, Pedro Passos Coelho recebe um salário mensal de 5.001,68 euros brutos, menos 12% do que recebia em 2010, antes dos cortes.