Government sets local elections for October 12
The election campaign’s final days will coincide with the submission of the 2026 State Budget, potentially giving the government an opportunity to leverage the budget process to sway voters.
Yesterday, the government officially scheduled the country’s municipal elections for October 12, the latest possible date allowed by law, following a decision made at the Council of Ministers meeting.
While most parliamentary parties supported this choice during consultations with the government, the Socialist Party (PS) had proposed an earlier date, September 28.
They argued that it would better allow newly elected local authorities to begin organizing and preparing their municipal budgets for the following year.
However, even within the PS, some members were in favor of the later date.
The timing of the vote means the final days of the election campaign will overlap with a key national deadline: the government’s submission of the 2026 State Budget, due by October 10.
This overlap could intensify political tensions and media focus as two major events converge in the same week.
Background
The local elections in Portugal consist of three separate votes held across the country’s 308 municipalities: one for the Municipal Chamber (where the winning list’s lead candidate becomes mayor), one for the Municipal Assembly, and one for the Parish Assembly, whose winner becomes parish president.
The latter is held separately in over 3,000 parishes nationwide.
In this election cycle, 38.3% of incumbent mayors (118 in total), including Porto, Sintra and Cascais, are barred from running for re-election due to term limits.
This includes 54 from the Socialist Party (PS), 44 from the centre-right Social Democratic Party (PSD), 11 from the communists (CDU), 5 independents, and 3 from conservatives CDS–PP.
The number of parishes will increase from 3,092 to 3,259, following changes to the 2013 local government reform law, which allowed merged parishes to separate, 167 separations have been approved.
The election is set by government decree, unlike legislative elections, which are called by the President. The date must be announced at least 80 days in advance and must fall on a Sunday or national holiday. For 2025, the government selected October 12, the latest legally permitted date.