Under its Constitution, the Portuguese Republic is a democratic state based on the rule of law, popular sovereignty, pluralism of expression and political organisation, and respect for and guarantee of fundamental rights and freedoms. Among its aims, the Constitution lists the achievement of economic, social and cultural democracy and the deepening of participatory democracy.
The Constitution
The Constitution of the Republic was drafted by the Constituent Assembly elected on 25 April 1975, a year after the Carnation Revolution, and came into force on 25 April 1976, having been approved on 2 April. It has since been revised seven times, most recently in 2005: among the most important changes, the 1982 revision abolished the Council of the Revolution, made up of military officers, and created the Constitutional Court, while the 1989 revision softened the socialist character of the economy.
The basic law establishes a semi-presidential system organised according to the rules of representative democracy. Sovereignty is exercised by four bodies, under the principle of separation of powers: the President of the Republic, the Assembly of the Republic, the Government and the Courts.
The President of the Republic
The head of state is the President of the Republic, who represents the Republic, guarantees national independence, the unity of the state and the proper functioning of democratic institutions, and is supreme commander of the Armed Forces. The President is elected by universal, direct and secret suffrage, with a run-off if needed, and serves five years; a third consecutive term is not allowed. The role is that of a guarantor but with real powers: the President can veto laws, send them to the Constitutional Court and dissolve Parliament.
Since March 2026 the President has been António José Seguro, a former leader of the Socialist Party, elected in the run-off of 8 February 2026 with about two thirds of the vote against André Ventura, leader of the Chega party. He succeeded Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who served two terms from 2016.
The Assembly of the Republic
The Assembly of the Republic is the Parliament, representing all Portuguese citizens. It holds legislative power, votes the budget and scrutinises the Government and the administration. It is unicameral, with 230 members elected by proportional representation in constituencies corresponding to the districts, the autonomous regions and emigrants in Europe and the rest of the world; each legislature lasts four years.
For decades politics was dominated by two big parties, the centre-left Socialist Party (PS) and the Social Democratic Party (PSD), which despite its name is centre-right. In recent years the picture has fragmented: after the snap election of May 2025, Parliament includes the Democratic Alliance (PSD and CDS-PP), which formed the government, the radical-right Chega party, now the second-largest group, the PS, Liberal Initiative, Livre, the Communist Party (in the CDU coalition), the Left Bloc, PAN and the Madeiran party JPP. The history of elections is covered on the page on elections in Portugal.
The Government
Executive power lies with the Government, the highest body of the public administration and responsible for the country's general policy. It consists of the Prime Minister, ministers and secretaries and under-secretaries of state. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President of the Republic in the light of election results and is politically accountable to the President and Parliament. Since 2024 the Prime Minister has been Luís Montenegro, leader of the PSD, confirmed after the 2025 election.
The courts
The judiciary is independent of the legislative and executive powers. The courts administer justice in the name of the people and their decisions are binding and prevail over those of any other authority. Besides the courts of first instance there are the appeal courts (Tribunais da Relação), the Supreme Court (Supremo Tribunal de Justiça), the Constitutional Court, the Court of Auditors, the Supreme Administrative Court and the administrative and tax courts. Permanent military courts were abolished by the 1997 constitutional revision.
Local government
The traditional historical provinces (Minho, Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Douro Litoral, Beira Alta, Beira Baixa, Beira Litoral, Estremadura, Ribatejo, Alto Alentejo, Baixo Alentejo and Algarve) overlap with the administrative division into 18 districts on the mainland, still used for many services and as electoral constituencies. The actual local authorities are the 308 municipalities (municípios), led by a mayor (Presidente da Câmara Municipal) and an assembly, and below them the freguesias, the smallest units, of which there are more than three thousand. The administrative regions provided for in the Constitution have never been created: a 1998 referendum rejected them, and the territory is organised into five large planning regions (North, Centre, Lisbon, Alentejo and Algarve), coordinated by regional commissions.
The autonomous regions
The two island regions of Madeira and the Azores enjoy special political and administrative autonomy guaranteed by the Constitution: they are autonomous regions, with their own statutes, an elected regional legislative assembly and a regional government. The President of the Regional Government is appointed on the basis of regional election results. The Republic is represented in each region by a Representative of the Republic, appointed by the President of the Republic, an office that replaced the old Minister of the Republic in 2006.