Ecologist Party "The Greens"

The Ecologist Party "The Greens" (, , PEV) is a Portuguese eco-socialist political party. It is a member of the European Greens and a founding member of the European Federation of Green Parties.

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.

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 (), 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.

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.

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.

Election results

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 ElectionLeaderVotes %Seats+/-Government1983António GonzalezUnited People Alliance1985Maria Amélia Santos 01987Herculano PomboUnitary Democratic Coalition 11991Isabel Castro 01995 01999 02002 02005Heloísa Apolónia 02009 02011 02015 0 2019 02022 22024 02025 0

Results in local elections Results in Local Elections YearCoalitionType of ElectionVoting%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 Election List leader Votes % Seats +/– EP Group 1987Unitary Democratic Coalition New – 1989 Maria Amélia Santos 1 G 1994 Isabel Castro 1 – 1999 Manuela Cunha 0 2004 Heloísa Apolónia 0 2009 Francisco Madeira Lopes 0 2014 Manuela Cunha 0 2019Mariana Silva 0 2024 0

Ecologist Party "The Greens"

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