Aguiar-Branco Confirmed As Speaker After PSD & PS Reach Agreement

José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, a deputy from PM Luis Montenegro's centre-right Social Democrats (PSD) has been confirmed as the new President of the Assembly of the Republic after a deal was struck between the PSD and the main opposition centre-left Socialist Party (PS).

• Aguiar-Branco was elected with the support of 160 deputies in the 230-member chamber, and will serve two years in office before handing over to PS candidate Francisco Assis for the latter two years of the parliament. This of course will be contingent on the parliament lasting its full term, not a given due to the gov'ts minority status and the difficulty PM Montenegro is likely to face in passing major legislation such as the annual budget.
• While the selection of a parliamentary president is not the most controversial of decisions, compared to votes on legislation, the outcome being a PSD-PS agreement could be indicative that Montenegro's insistence that he will not rely on the right-wing nationalist Chega to govern could be maintained.
• A PSD-PS gov't is more likely to maintain Portugal's pro-EU stances with regard to social and fiscal policy seen under former PS PM Antonio Costa, compared to the potential destabilising influence of the anti-system populist Chega steering the PSD gov't.