2000 Azorean regional election

Background

In the Azores, there were 52 seats in the Regional Parliament in dispute, the same of the previous election, in 1996. The seats were distributed by the 9 islands of the archipelago proportionally to the population of each island; however, each island is entitled to at least two members of parliament.

Electoral system

For the 2000 election, the Azores regional parliament elected 52 members through a proportional system in which the 9 islands elect a number of MPs proportional to the number of registered voters. MPs are allocated by using the D'Hondt method.

Political parties

The political parties, movements and alliances during these elections mirrored many of the parties that appeared in the national legislative and/or European elections of that year, but specifically included the following:

• Left Bloc (BE)
• People's Monarchist Party-Democratic Party of the Atlantic (PPM-PDA), actually two independent parties; the PPM and PDA, ran as a coalition; leaders of each party: Miguel Pignatelli Queirós (PPM) and Joaquim de Aguiar Cabral (PDA)
• People's Party (CDS–PP);
• Socialist Party (PS);
• Social Democratic Party (PSD), leader Manuel Arruda
• Unitary Democratic Coalition (CDU), is a coalition between the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) Açores and the Greens (PEV)

Results

For a second term, the Socialist Party won the regional election in Azores, increasing its share of the vote from 30% to 49%, and re-electing Carlos César to the presidency of the Regional Government. Many of the Social Democrat's mandates were lost, while César and his teram obtained an absolute majority with 30 of the assembly's 52 seats.

The Social Democrats, who had dominated the politics of the islands since the Carnation Revolution lost almost 10% of the vote, and six MPs, following four years of deep internal divisions. The People's Party (CDS), despite raising their share of the vote (by more than 2%), lost one of their representatives, due to the application of the Hondt election model in the nine islands. The People's Monarchist Party, which had not participated in the previous election, ran in coalition with the Democratic Party of the Atlantic, but were unsuccessful in obtaining any representation. The Unitary Democratic Coalition (CDU), led by the Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) raised their popular vote by 1%, achieving another deputy (on the island of Faial).

After aligning itself with many of the smaller left-of-centre parties, the People's Democratic Union (UDP), elements of the party merged with the Left Bloc, but did not achieve any representation.

Summary of votes and seats

| |49,438||49.20||3.4||24||30||6||57.69||11.5 |- | |32,642||32.48||8.5||24||18||6||34.62||11.5 |- | |9,605||9.56||2.2||3||2||1||3.85||1.9 |- | |4,856||4.83||1.4||1||2||1||3.85||1.9 |- | |1,387||1.38||||||0||||0.00|| |- |799||0.80||||||0||||0.00||

Distribution by constituency

|- class="unsortable" !rowspan=2|Constituency!!%!!S!!%!!S!!%!!S!!%!!S !rowspan=2|Total S |- class="unsortable" style="text-align:center;" !colspan=2 | PS !colspan=2 | PSD !colspan=2 | CDS-PP !colspan=2 | CDU |- | 1 | 31.8 | 1

Maps

File:Eleições Legislativas Regionais nos Açores de 2000.svg|Map showing island constituencies won by political parties.

References

References

1. "Mapa com o número de deputados da Assembleia Legislativa Regional dos Açores 2000". Comissão Nacional de Eleições.
2. (2000-10-03). "O D. Sebastião enfrenta o nevoeiro".
3. (20 May 2009). "Acórdão N.º255/09". Tribunal Constitucional.