ZAP
Highlighting the north, Portuguese want to bring up the new table refers to regionalization. But there are those who think the matter is resolved in the Assembly.
Seven out of 10 respondents in an opinion study by ISCTE, released today, consider that regionalization should be discussed again, while four out of five defend a new referendum on the creation of regions.
The study “What the Portuguese think 2025 – decentralization, deconcentration and regionalization”, to which Lusa had access, revealed that 71% of respondents argue that regionalization “must be discussed again”about 28 years after a referendum that refused the regions, with 19% saying that the issue should not be discussed again (10% replied not to know).
“This position is transversal to the entire national territory, although in the North Region The respondents are slightly more favorable The reopening of this discussion (74%) ”is highlighted.
On the other hand, 75% of the answers indicated that the debate must be completed with a new referendum to the Portuguese9% that must be decided by the Republic Assembly and 7% by the government (8% of respondents do not know or did not respond).
Among respondents who argue that regionalization should be discussed again, there are 84% who want a new referendum.
Also those who consider that the question should not be reopened prefer the realization of a new referendum: there are 71% in this group that prefer to have an active voice in this decision.
The authors pointed out that the percentage of respondents who would like to see this decision made by referendum is distributed “very similarly throughout the ideological position scale, that is, from left to right, About 75% of respondents in each ideological group are favorable ”.
In the Opinion Study conducted by the Institute for Public and Social Policies of the University Institute of Lisbon (IPPS/ISCTE), 57% of respondents argue for “direct election by the inhabitants of each region” of the Presidents of Regional Coordination and Development Committees (CCDR).
On the other hand, 16% considers that CCDR presidents should be chosen by “public tender”, 13% defend the current model of election“ by the set of mayors in each region ”and only 3% consider that the government should be choosing these leaders.
The study will be presented today at the 2025 Public Policy Forum at ISCTE, with the participation of CCDR presidents, mayors and academics.
“The Portuguese make a very positive assessment of local power and consider that their municipality has improved in the last decade, while worsening the country’s development in the same period. municipalist slope That helps to explain the agreement with the reopening of the discussion about regionalization, ”said Pedro Adão e Silva, one of the study’s authors, along with Isabel Flores, and today will present the results.
In the year in which more municipal elections are held, the Public Policy Forum of the ISCTE It is dedicated to the theme “New skills of local power”.
In addition to the study, the Forum will discuss the “housing crisis”, “socioterritorial inequalities” and “coordination of intelligent specialization strategies”.
The ISCTE Award Public Policy 2025 will be delivered to the “Municipal Environmental Sustainability Policy” of the Municipality of Loures, with the Porto Metropolitan area an honorable mention for its “Metropolitan Public Policy of Youth” and the Oeiras City Council another honorable mention for “social intervention with children and young people through music”.
The report is based on individual inquiries, held by GFK Metris, between February 13 and April 14, to citizens 18 years or older, residents on the continent.
Of 14,297 eligible telephone contacts were obtained 3,059 valid telephone interviews, ensuring representativeness at the level of NUTS II (territorial unit nomenclature for statistical purposes) and applying gender, age, region and instruction in line with 2021 censuses.
The degree of confidence is 95% and the margin of error is 2% for mainland Portugal; 3% for the northern region; 4% for the Centro and Lisbon region and Tagus Valley and 5% for Alentejo and Algarve.
