Ecologist Party "The Greens"
Partido Ecologista "Os Verdes"
AbbreviationPEV
LeaderHeloísa Apolónia
Founded19 May 1982 (1982-05-19)
HeadquartersRua da Boavista 83, 3.º Dto, 1200-066 Lisbon
NewspaperFolha Verde
Youth wingEcolojovem
Membership6,000
Ideology
Euroscepticism[2][3]
Political positionLeft-wing[4]
National affiliationUnitary Democratic Coalition
European affiliationEuropean Green Party
International affiliationGlobal Greens
European Parliament groupGreens–European Free Alliance
Colours  Green
Assembly of the Republic
0 / 230
European Parliament
0 / 21
Regional
parliaments
0 / 104
Local government
(Mayors)
1 / 308
Local government
(Parishes)
0 / 3,058
Party flag
Flag of the Ecologist Party "The Greens"
Website
www.osverdes.pt

The Ecologist Party "The Greens" (Portuguese: Partido Ecologista "Os Verdes", pronounced [pɐɾˈtiðu ekuluˈʒiʃtɐ uʒ ˈveɾðɨʃ], PEV) is a Portuguese eco-socialist[1] political party. It is a member of the European Greens and a founding member of the European Federation of Green Parties.[5]

It was the first Portuguese ecologist party, and since its foundation, in 1982, PEV has had a close relationship with the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP). From 1987 onwards, it entered all the legislative, and municipal elections as part of Unitary Democratic Coalition, which also includes the PCP. Between 1983 and 1987, PEV was part of the United People Alliance, to which the PCP also belonged. For this reason, PEV is often criticized for being an "appendage" of the PCP. People who expressed that opinion include former prime minister José Sócrates.

PEV holds many mandates in local assemblies, but, following the January 2022 election, it lost its parliamentary representation.[6][7]

History and general information

The Party was founded 1982, originally named the Portuguese Ecologist Movement – Party "The Greens" (Movimento Ecologista Português – Partido "Os Verdes"), by a group of Portuguese citizens interested in the promotion of the ecologist movement in Portuguese society, with the support of the Portuguese Communist Party, including in its founders one of its members, Zita Seabra.

In the end of the 1970s, Earth was facing new ecological problems, such as the greenhouse effect and the depletion of the ozone layer and the lack of awareness of this in Portuguese society, along with the lack of an organized Ecologist movement, led to the foundation of the Ecologist Party "The Greens" in order to put such problems on the political agenda.

The Party created regional groups immediately following its foundation, groups that have continued to grow since then. The growth of the Party throughout the country allowed many members to integrate the electoral lists of the CDU, some being elected to very different tasks. Currently (as of 2022), The PEV has several members elected in Municipal Chambers, in Municipal Assemblies and in Parish Assemblies, but it has no members elected in the Assembly of the Republic (Portuguese parliament). There is some criticism of its close ties to the Communist Party. Given that PEV never stood in elections on its own, some right-wing politicians have gone to the point of nicknaming PEV "The Watermelons – Greens Outside, Reds Inside". However, the official positions of both parties on certain questions can be quite different, of which the stance regarding bullfighting is an example.[8]

The PEV is also present in the National Electoral Commission and also in the National Council of Education. The youth wing of the Party is the Ecolojovem, founded in 1989, which is a founding member of the Federation of Young European Greens.[9]

The PEV edits a newspaper, the Folha Verde (Green Leaf), which received several press prizes for its unique design and style.

The PEV supported the minority Socialist Costa Government (2015–2019) with a confidence and supply agreement.

In the 2022 legislative elections, the PEV lost its remaining parliamentary representation.[6]

Electoral results

CDU results in the local election of 2005. (Azores and Madeira are not shown)

In elections, the PEV is closely allied with the Portuguese Communist Party, first in the Unitary Democratic Coalition. This explains a nickname given to Os Verdes by some: "melancias" (lit. watermelons): green outside and red inside. The "green" here is a reference to the self-proclaimed ecologist nature of the party, while "red" means "communist".

Results in parliamentary elections

Results in Parliamentary Elections
[10](year links to election page)
Year Coalition Type of Election Voting % Mandates
1987 CDU Portuguese Parliament 685,109 12.2% 31 (2)
1991 CDU Portuguese Parliament 501,840 8.8% 17 (2)
1995 CDU Portuguese Parliament 504,007 8.6% 15 (2)
1999 CDU Portuguese Parliament 483,716 9.0% 17 (2)
2002 CDU Portuguese Parliament 378,640 7.0% 12 (2)
2005 CDU Portuguese Parliament 432,009 7.6% 14 (2)
2009 CDU Portuguese Parliament 446,174 7.9% 15 (2)
2011 CDU Portuguese Parliament 440,850 7.9% 16 (2)
2015 CDU Portuguese Parliament 444,907 8.3% 17 (2)
2019 CDU Portuguese Parliament 332,018 6.3% 12 (2)
2022 CDU Portuguese Parliament 236,635 4.4% 6 (0)

Note:

  • In brackets is the number of MPs elected by the PEV in the total elected by CDU.
  • In 1991 the overall number of MPs changed from the original 250 to 230.

Results in local elections

Results in Local Elections
[11] (year links to election page)
Year Coalition Type of Election Voting % Mandates
1985 APU Local 942,147 19.4% 305
1989 CDU Local 633,682 12.8% 252
1993 CDU Local 689,928 12.8% 246
1997 CDU Local 643,956 12.0% 236
2001 CDU Local 557,481 10.6% 202
2005 CDU Local 590,496 11.0% 203
2009 CDU Local 537,329 9.7% 174
2013 CDU Local 552,690 11.1% 213
2017 CDU Local 489,189 9.5% 171
2021 CDU Local 410,666 8.2% 148

European Parliament

These are the results for Unitary Democratic Coalition.[12]
Election year # of overall
votes		  % of overall
vote		 # of overall
seats won		 +/- Notes
1987 646,640 11.5 (#4)
3 / 24
1989 594,961 14.4 (#3)
4 / 24
 Increase 1
1994 339,283 11.2 (#4)
3 / 25
 Decrease 1
1999 357,575 10.3 (#3)
2 / 25
 Decrease 1
2004 309,406 9.1 (#3)
2 / 24
 Steady 0
2009 379,787 10.6 (#4)
2 / 22
 Steady 0
2014 416,377 12.7 (#3)
3 / 21
 Increase 1
2019 228,156 6.88 (#4)
2 / 21
 Decrease 1

Note:

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Nordsieck, Wolfram (2019). "Portugal". Parties and Elections in Europe. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  2. ↑ ""Os Verdes" encontram no referendo ideia de que políticas da União Europeia não servem" (in Portuguese). RTP Notícias. 24 June 2016.
  3. ↑ "Portugal - Europe Elects".
  4. ↑ "Partido Ecologista Os Verdes" (in Portuguese). medium.com. 17 May 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  5. ↑ "European Greens, Partido Ecologista – Os Verdes". europeangreens.eu. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  6. 1 2 "Verdes perdem representação parlamentar". www.jornaldenegocios.pt (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  7. ↑ "Historia do Partido". osverdes.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  8. ↑ "Os Verdes. Quando divergiu do PCP foi para se aproximar do PS". 1 February 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  9. ↑ "Ecolojovem - Apresentação". osverdes.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  10. ↑ "CNE Resultados" (in Portuguese). Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  11. ↑ "CNE Resultados" (in Portuguese). Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  12. ↑ "CNE Resultados" (in Portuguese). Retrieved 11 July 2016.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.