Portugal Elections and Potential Impact on the Country's Crypto-Friendly Status
Summary:
Portugal's general elections, held on March 10, 2024, signal a change in the country's political landscape. The center-left Socialist Party's dominance is threatened by corruption scandals, and the new center-left coalition Democratic Alliance and right-wing party Chega are emerging as competitors. Notably, all national political parties have included crypto-friendly policies in their election campaigns. Portugal, known as a global hub for crypto users and blockchain companies due to its unique tax structure, may see a shift in its digital asset policies with the new government. Smaller parties such as IL, BE, Livre, and CDU could impact the government formation, possibly affecting the existing crypto-friendly policies. The election's results are critical for not only the future political structure but also the potential impact on the crypto community and Portugal's standing as a recognized hub for digital assets.
Polling day dawned on March 10, 2024, a month before the landmark 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution, signalling the commencement of Portugal's general elections. Uniquely, these elections are indicative of a novel vista in the country's political scenario. Recalling the events of 2022, Antonio Costa, the country's former Prime Minister led his party to a rare, complete victory by amassing 41.37% of the votes. Consequently, the Socialist Party (PS), identified as a centre-left faction, obtained the authority to govern sans the compulsion of alliance formations. Despite this triumph, the reign of the socialists was marked by numerous corruption scandals leading to numerous departures, notably Prime Minister Costa. This upheaval culminated in the call for fresh elections by the President and dented the predominant political dominance of PS. Current studies by Consulmark2 project the elections as a tight race. A considerable segment of the respondents, approximately 30%, extended their support to the Democratic Alliance (AD), a newly-formed centrist coalition headed by Luis Montenegro. Albeit dominating the polls, the PS’s candidate Pedro Nuno Santos is closely chasing the AD with 27% votes. Chega, an emergent right-wing party, wields significant sway in this closely-fought competition with 18.2% votes. Founder André Ventura has used the wave of dissatisfaction with PS to propose Chega as the voice of the Portuguese population. Smaller parties like the centre-right Liberal Initiative (IL) (6%), left-wing Left Bloc (BE) (5.2%), ecosocialist Livre (4.6%) and communist Unitary Democratic Coalition (CDU) (2.5%) might impact the government formation by becoming coalition members. Moreover, Portugal's idiosyncratic taxation guidelines and policy environment have promoted it as a major attraction for crypto enthusiasts and blockchain corporations globally since 2016. Therefore, it is intriguing to speculate how the resultant government's differing strategies could affect Portugal’s standing as a renowned hub for digital assets, a position held by only a few countries within Europe. The Portuguese national parties distinguish themselves by incorporating cryptocurrency standpoints within their election agendas. The New Economy Institute, a crypto association formed by distinguished members from the Portuguese crypto society, encapsulates the key dissimilarities within each party. Chega emerges as the party with the most crypto-inclusive policy. It aims to not only uphold Portugal's global crypto hub status but also extend the use of blockchain technology at the institutional level. Chega realizes this aspiration in its plan to incorporate technology education including coding and blockchain in school curriculums. AD holds similar views but seeks to introduce coding to the national curriculum with the goal of achieving top 10 status in digitalization across Europe by 2030; it does not mention blockchain. The traversal of enigmatic waters in the election and the potential ramifications of varied outcomes on crypto preferences has stirred the Portuguese political and crypto community. Despite the apprehensions, most political parties display a neutral or affable approach towards cryptocurrency and blockchain regulations which augurs well for crypto supporters in Portugal. However, smaller units could prompt the leading party into forming coalitions which could threaten existing crypto-friendly policies. The effects of the election on the Portuguese crypto community and the future formulation of crypto-friendly policies remains a matter of speculation, contingent on the outcomes of this multi-faceted political race.
Published At
3/10/2024 7:16:00 PM
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