Portugal's President calls March snap elections

LISBON: Portugal's President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has announced snap parliamentary elections for March 10, 2024, following Tuesday's resignation of Prime Minister Antonio Costa, who is under corruption investigation.

In a televised national address after a meeting with the Council of State, Rebelo de Sousa said on Thursday that the call for early elections comes from the need for "clarity and direction to overcome an unexpected void that surprised the Portuguese".

The President added that he would dissolve the parliament and call early legislative elections, but with "the guarantee of the indispensable economic and social stability that is provided by the prior vote on the Budget of the State for 2024".

The House approved the 2024 budget bill on first reading on October 31 and the final vote is due on November 29, Xinhua news agency reported.

He thanked Costa for "his service to the public cause" and said he hoped that "time would allow for clarification of what happened," referring to the accusations against the former Prime Minister.

"The approval of the budget will allow us to meet the expectations of many Portuguese citizens and to keep up with the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan, which does not stop and cannot stop with the transition from one government to a caretaker government or later with the dissolution of Parliament," he added.

This week, the Public Prosecutor's Office revealed its investigation into Costa for alleged corruption in lithium and hydrogen exploitation contracts, leading to Costa's resignation and the indictment of nine suspects, five of whom have been detained.