First casualty in the Government: Minister of Internal Administration resigns

Maria Lúcia Amaral understood that she did not have the personal or political conditions to continue. Luís Montenegro stays with the portfolio, for now.

The Minister of Internal Administration, Maria Lúcia Amaral, resigned and the President of the Republic accepted it, according to an official note released tonight.

“The President of the Republic accepted the resignation of the Minister of Internal Administration, who understood that he no longer had the personal and political conditions indispensable for the exercise of the position, and which was proposed to him by the Prime Minister, who will temporarily assume the respective powers, in accordance with article 6, no. dismissal becomes effective”, says an official from Belém.

Constitutionalist Maria Lúcia Amaral assumed the role of Minister of Internal Administration on June 5, 2025, with the inauguration of the XXV Government, after having been at the head of the Ombudsman’s Office for eight years, the institution responsible for receiving complaints from citizens who see their fundamental rights violated.

At 68 years old, Maria Lúcia Amaral replaced Margarida Blasco in the position.

This is the first dismissal of the XXV PSD/CDS-PP Government led by Luís Montenegro, just over eight months after his inauguration, on June 5, 2025.

It will be precisely the prime minister a to assume temporarily the powers that belonged to the Minister of Internal Administration, when the dismissal of Maria Lúcia Amaral becomes effective, as stated in the note from the presidency.

Marcelo realizes

His departure was a decision that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa understood. The President of the Republic stated that he understood the resignation, given the “complex situation” of recent weeks.

When asked by journalists when leaving Culturgest, in Lisbon, whether Maria Lúcia Amaral’s dismissal was considered late and whether someone with a different profile was needed for the position, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa declined to answer these questions, and said that it was the minister who “considered the circumstances” and “understood that she did not have the personal and political conditions”.

“Of course it is a situation complThis is exactly what we have been experiencing in recent weeks and, therefore, given this, we must respect the Minister’s wishes. And the Prime Minister understood this and conveyed it. I understood and accepted. And now tomorrow [quarta-feira] we will see, we will talk or not”, he added.

Other reactions

The PS secretary general defended that the dismissal of the Minister of Internal Administration “is proof that the Government failed to respond” to the storm and recalled that “the most important person responsible for Civil Protection” is the Prime Minister.

“I intend to tell the Prime Minister tomorrow what I have to say in the parliamentary debate, but it is clear that the resignation of the Minister of Internal Affairs is proof that the Government failed to respond to this emergencyto this storm”, he told journalists José Luís Carneiro upon arrival at the PS headquarters, where the PS National Political Commission takes place.

The president of Chega, André Ventura, considered that the minister’s resignation “is proof of the Government’s inability” to manage the country’s problems and “a clear failure” of the prime minister.

“This resignation of the Minister of Internal Administration is proof of the Government’s inability to manage all the adversities that the country has faced, from the fires to the recent phenomenon of storms”, said the deputy.

The president of the Liberal Initiative, Mariana Leitão, defended that he sins late the resignation of Maria Lúcia Amaral, and urged the Government to “face this department with competence and communication capacity in a crisis situation”.

The Portuguese Police Union (SPP/PSP) regretted “the late departure” of the Minister of Internal Administration, considering that it was “clear that the existing problems would drag on and worsen” if he continued in office.