Carneiro, the caps and more messages out there
There was a curious moment when Carneiro skipped a specific paragraph in this part of the speech about the relationship with the majority in Parliament: the one dedicated to constitutional review. The explanation is prosaic and was given by the candidate himself to Observador, who said he had dropped the paragraph because the speech was long. There were 32 pages, yet he only chose to skip this one, which was quite delicate. What is certain is that he was going to say exactly what he had already said about this chapter, reinforcing the idea (aligned with Luís Montenegro) that “it is not a priority”. Especially “in a context of parliamentary fragmentation and the growing number of deputies who want to destroy constitutional principles”, he wrote — but did not read.
He also defined an “agenda for the future”, which involves increasing the average salary, guaranteeing housing for families and autonomy in energy production within ten years.
He explained that he wants to increase incomes, with the average salary reaching the average European salary in ten years; within that same timeframe he wants to have “all families with access to decent housing, either through the public market or through incentives for the private construction of affordable homes”; to ensure that “by 2035 at the latest, Portugal will be able to supply itself with electricity using renewable sources”.
At this point, with António José Seguro already officially announced as presidential candidate, the PS is in turmoil over the presidential elections. But Carneiro wanted to put a stop to the conversations and parades of support or criticism that have been going on in recent months by saying that “the immediate priority is the local elections” and that they are “a powerful antidote to the progression of populism”.
He states that the PS “will seek progressive convergences where they prove necessary, solid and successful”. And he calls for “more women and young people” on the PS lists.
As for the presidential elections, he simply said: “We will get there. It is the PS that defines its agenda and it is the PS that defines the hierarchy of its priorities”. And he even made a timetable to postpone the presidential elections until after the local elections: “The local elections will be at the end of September, beginning of October. The presidential elections will only be in 2026. Each thing in its own time”, he stated, guaranteeing that he knows what his “duty is in defending the autonomy and strategic unity of the PS”.
With a single candidate for the leadership and after an electoral catastrophe, José Luís Carneiro managed to fill the garden of the party's national headquarters with representatives from the various socialist wings, including the one he fought against in the last direct elections, led by Pedro Nuno Santos. Even so, he did not have in the audience his supporter in the last direct elections, Fernando Medina, nor Mariana Vieira da Silva . Duarte Cordeiro was also absent. Of the names of the so-called "Lisbon nucleus", which sought an alternative to his candidacy for the leadership, Carneiro only had Ana Catarina Mendes in attendance.
At the PS national headquarters, Maria de Belém, Manuel Alegre and Vera Jardim were among the first to arrive and occupy the first row of chairs arranged in the garden. And at one point António Costa's wife, Fernanda Tadeu , also occupied one of the front chairs. The former leader is now president of the European Council and has kept himself away from party politics, but Fernanda Tadeu was present — something she had never done during the previous leadership of the PS. And she was one of the four women who, at the end of his speech, called Maria de Belém and the mayor Maria de Medeiros to the stage, alongside his wife, Goreti.
observador
