1985 Portuguese local elections
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15 December 1985
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All 305 Portuguese municipalities and 4,260 Portuguese Parishes All 1,981 local government councils | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Turnout | 63.9%  7.5 pp | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Local elections were held in Portugal on 15 December 1985. They were the fourth local elections in Portugal since the 1976 Constitution introduced the concept of democratic local power.[3] The elections took place just nine weeks after the 1985 legislative election and just one month before the 1986 Presidential elections.
The elections consisted of three separate elections in the 305 Portuguese municipalities that existed at the time, the election for the Municipal Chambers, another election for the Municipal Assembly and a last one for the lower-level Parish Assembly, whose winner is elected parish president, this last was held separately in the more than 4,000 parishes around the country. This election was the first to grant a 4-year term, instead of the previous 3-year terms. The number of members of the Municipal Assemblies and Parish Assemblies was greatly reduced in comparison with the former election.
For the first time, the Social Democratic Party polled first by itself, since the coalition with the Democratic and Social Center, the Democratic Alliance, that achieved good results in 1979 and 1982, had been disbanded. Despite finishing second and losing almost 4 points in share, the Socialist Party lost only 4 of the former 83 mayors plus the presidency achieved in coalition with the Leftwing Union for the Socialist Democracy.
The Democratic and Social Center, this time participating alone in every municipality, after the end of the Democratic Alliance, continued its electoral decline, gathering only 10 percent of the votes. Despite keeping the same number of mayors achieved in 1982, in the municipalities where it ran alone, 27, the party lost 49 presidencies achieved in coalition with the Social Democrats.
The Portuguese Communist Party and the Portuguese Democratic Movement, united in the United People Alliance, lost one percentage point in comparison with the election of 1982 and lost 8 mayors, gathering only 47 presidencies. However, despite only a small drop in share of the vote, in the elections to Municipal Assemblies, the coalition lost almost 700 assembly members, decreasing its representation to 1062 members due to the overall reduction of mandates.
The newly founded Democratic Renewal Party, achieved almost 5 percent of the voting and the presidency of 3 municipalities. In the elections to Municipal Assemblies it gathered almost 6% of the voting and 270 Assembly members, being the great surprise of the election.
Turnout in these elections fell more than eight points compared with 1982, with 63 percent of voters casting a ballot.
Background
Electoral system
All 305 municipalities are allocated a certain number of councilors to elect corresponding to the number of registered voters in a given municipality. Each party or coalition must present a list of candidates. The winner of the most voted list for the municipal council is automatically elected mayor, similar to first-past-the-post (FPTP). The lists are closed and the seats in each municipality are apportioned according to the D'Hondt method.[4]
By-elections (1982–1985)
During the normal three-year term of local governments, four municipal council by-elections were held: In the municipality of Guimarães on 4 September 1983; In the municipality of Marco de Canaveses on 18 December 1983; In the municipality of São João da Madeira on 15 April 1984; In the municipality of Lamego on 29 April 1984, adding to this, sixty-four parishes also held a by-election for parish assemblies.[5]
| Date | Municipality | Population | Previous control | New control | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 September 1983 | Guimarães | 146,959 | Socialist Party (PS) | Socialist Party (PS) | ||
| 18 December 1983 | Marco de Canaveses | 46,131 | Democratic and Social Center (CDS) | Democratic and Social Center (CDS) | ||
| 15 April 1984 | São João da Madeira | 16,444 | Democratic Alliance (AD) | Democratic and Social Center (CDS) | ||
| 29 April 1984 | Lamego | 32,833 | Social Democratic Party (PSD) | Social Democratic Party (PSD) | ||
Parties
The main political forces involved in the election were:
- United People Alliance (APU)
- Democratic and Social Center (CDS)
- Democratic Renewal Party (PRD)
- Socialist Party (PS)
- Social Democratic Party (PSD)
Results
Municipal Councils
National summary of votes and seats
| Parties | Votes | % | ±pp swing | Candidacies | Councillors | Mayors | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | ± | Total | ± | |||||||
| Social Democratic | 1,649,560 | 33.99 |  19.4 |
268 | 822 | 380 |
149 | 61 | ||
| Socialist | 1,330,388 | 27.41 | 3.7 |
285 | 571 | 57 |
79 | 4 | ||
| United People Alliance | 942,197 | 19.41 | 1.3 |
305 | 305 | 20 |
47 | 8 | ||
| Democratic and Social Centre | 471,838 | 9.72 | 2.2 |
163 | 224 | 33 |
27 |  0 | ||
| Democratic Renewal | 230,177 | 4.74 | — | 115 | 51 | — | 3 | — | ||
| Popular Democratic Union | 28,701 | 0.59 | 0.0 |
63 | 3 | 0 |
0 | 0 | ||
| People's Monarchist | 23,897 | 0.49 | 0.3 |
6 | 3 | 2 |
0 | 1 | ||
| Portuguese Workers' Communist | 11,275 | 0.23 | 0.1 |
32 | 0 | 0 |
0 | 0 | ||
| Christian Democratic | 7,863 | 0.16 | 0.1 |
5 | 2 | 0 |
0 | 0 | ||
| Workers Party of Socialist Unity | 2,311 | 0.05 | 0.0 |
3 | 0 | 0 |
0 | 0 | ||
| Total valid | 4,698,207 | 96.80 | 0.5 |
— | 1,981 | 32 |
305 | 0 | ||
| Blank ballots | 76,607 | 1.58 | 0.2 | |||||||
| Invalid ballots | 78,715 | 1.62 | 0.3 | |||||||
| Total | 4,853,529 | 100.00 | ||||||||
| Registered voters/turnout | 7,595,146 | 63.90 | 7.5 | |||||||
| Source:[8][6] | ||||||||||
Municipality map
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Municipalities won by:
■ - PSD: 149
■ - PS: 79
■ - APU: 47
■ - CDS: 27
■ - PRD: 3
City control
The following table lists party control in all district capitals, highlighted in bold, as well as in municipalities above 100,000 inhabitants. Population estimates from the 1981 Census.[7]
Municipal Assemblies
National summary of votes and seats
| Parties | Votes | % | ±pp swing | Candidacies | Mandates | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | ± | |||||||||
| Social Democratic | 1,438,790 | 29.64 | 15.5 |
2,539 | 380 | |||||
| Socialist | 1,170,840 | 24.12 | 6.9 |
1,817 | 1,386 | |||||
| United People Alliance | 968,148 | 19.95 | 1.0 |
1,062 | 719 | |||||
| Democratic and Social Centre | 782,209 | 16.12 | 8.4 |
1,019 | 5 | |||||
| Democratic Renewal | 260,960 | 5.38 | — | 270 | — | |||||
| Popular Democratic Union | 33,447 | 0.69 | 0.0 |
14 | 6 | |||||
| People's Monarchist | 15,927 | 0.33 | 0.1 |
7 | 21 | |||||
| Portuguese Workers' Communist | 6,494 | 0.13 | 0.0 |
0 | 1 | |||||
| Christian Democratic | 4,026 | 0.08 | 0.1 |
2 | 0 | |||||
| Socialist League of the Workers | 784 | 0.02 | — | 0 | — | |||||
| Workers Party of Socialist Unity | 250 | 0.00 | 0.0 |
0 | 0 | |||||
| Total valid | 4,681,875 | 96.46 | 0.7 |
— | 6,730 | 3,271 | ||||
| Blank ballots | 94,075 | 1.94 | 0.3 | |||||||
| Invalid ballots | 77,573 | 1.60 | 0.4 | |||||||
| Total | 4,853,523 | 100.00 | ||||||||
| Registered voters/turnout | 7,595,146 | 63.90 | 7.5 | |||||||
| Source:[8] | ||||||||||
Parish Assemblies
National summary of votes and seats
| Parties | Votes | % | ±pp swing | Candidacies | Mandates | Presidents | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | ± | Total | ± | |||||||
| Social Democratic | 1,584,664 | 32.84 | 17.6 |
13,117 | 3,532 |
1,841 | 799 | |||
| Socialist | 1,303,759 | 27.02 | 3.4 |
9,044 | 3,804 |
1,001 | 24 | |||
| United People Alliance | 993,813 | 20.60 | 0.7 |
3,675 | 1,424 |
355 | 21 | |||
| Democratic and Social Centre | 507,715 | 10.52 | 2.7 |
4,532 | 412 |
518 | 105 | |||
| Democratic Renewal | 164,410 | 3.41 | — | 726 | — | 40 | — | |||
| Independents | 67,628 | 1.40 | 0.1 |
793 | 206 |
107 | 6 | |||
| Popular Democratic Union | 28,572 | 0.59 | 0.1 |
26 | 5 |
1 | 0 | |||
| Portuguese Workers' Communist | 4,153 | 0.09 | 0.0 |
0 | 0 |
0 | 0 | |||
| People's Monarchist | 2,585 | 0.05 | 0.1 |
24 | 79 |
2 | 7 | |||
| Christian Democratic | 1,021 | 0.02 | 0.0 |
4 | 4 |
0 | 0 | |||
| Workers Party of Socialist Unity | 792 | 0.02 | 0.0 |
0 | 0 |
0 | 0 | |||
| Total valid | 4,659,112 | 96.57 | 0.5 |
— | 31,941 | 10,202 |
3,865 | 120 | ||
| Blank ballots | 84,823 | 1.76 | 0.0 | |||||||
| Invalid ballots | 80,780 | 1.67 | 0.4 | |||||||
| Total | 4,824,715 | 100.00 | ||||||||
| Registered voters/turnout | 7,554,276 | 63.87 | 7.5 | |||||||
| Source:[8] | ||||||||||
Maps
Notes
- The source of the voting data is the Portuguese Electoral Commission Archived 2020-02-05 at the Wayback Machine
Further Notes:
- United People Alliance (APU) was composed by the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) and the Portuguese Democratic Movement (MDP/CDE).
- The number of candidacies expresses the number of municipalities or parishes in which the party or coalition presented lists.
- The number of mandates expresses the number of municipal deputies in the Municipal Assembly election and the number of parish deputies in the Parish Assembly election.
- The turnout varies because one may choose not to vote for all the organs.
See also
References
- ↑ Cities where the PSD contested alone. Not with coalitions with CDS or PPM.
- ↑ Cities where the CDS contested alone. Not with coalitions with PSD or PPM.
- ↑ "Decreto-Lei n.º 701-B/76, de 29 de setembro". Diário da República (in Portuguese). 29 September 1976. Retrieved 10 May 2026.
- ↑ Eleição dos titulares dos órgãos das autarquias locais. Diário da República (in Portuguese.) Retrieved 17 July 2025.
- ↑ "Eleições / Referendos". Comissão Nacional de Eleições (in Portuguese). Retrieved 10 March 2026.
- 1 2 "Eleições Autárquicas 2005 – Atlas Eleitoral" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs (in Portuguese). 2007. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- 1 2 "Instituto Nacional de Estatística (Recenseamentos Gerais da População)". www.ine.pt (in Portuguese). Statistics Portugal. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
- 1 2 3 "Resultados Eleitorais SGMAI". Ministry of Home Affairs (in Portuguese). Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ↑ "Presidentes das Câmaras Municipais Eleitos 1982" (PDF). www.cne.pt (in Portuguese). Comissão Nacional de Eleições. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ↑ "Presidentes das Câmaras Municipais Eleitos 1985" (PDF). www.cne.pt (in Portuguese). Comissão Nacional de Eleições. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
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