Country name
conventional long form: Portuguese Republic
conventional short form: Portugal
local long form: Republica Portuguesa
local short form: Portugal

Government type parliamentary democracy

Capital Lisbon

Administrative divisions 18 districts (distritos, singular - distrito) and 2 autonomous regions* (regioes autonomas, singular - regiao autonoma); Aveiro, Acores (Azores)*, Beja, Braga, Braganca, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Evora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria, Lisboa, Madeira*, Portalegre, Porto, Santarem, Setubal, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real, Viseu

Independence 1143 (independent republic proclaimed 5 October 1910)

National holiday Portugal Day, 10 June (1580)

Constitution 25 April 1976, revised 30 October 1982, 1 June 1989, 5 November 1992, and 3 September 1997

Legal system civil law system; the Constitutional Tribunal reviews the constitutionality of legislation; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
chief of state: President Jorge SAMPAIO (since 9 March 1996)
note: there is also a Council of State that acts as a consultative body to the president
head of government: Prime Minister Jose Manuel DURAO Barroso (since 6 April 2002)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 14 January 2001 (next to be held NA January 2006); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president
election results: Jorge SAMPAIO reelected president; percent of vote - Jorge SAMPAIO (Socialist) 55.8%, Joaquim FERREIRA Do Amaral (Social Democrat) 34.5%, Antonio ABREU (Communist) 5.1%

Legislative branch unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (230 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 March 2002 (next to be held NA 2006)
election results: percent of vote by party - PSD 40.1%, PS 37.8%, PP 8.7%, PCP/PEV 6.9%, The Left Bloc 2.7%; seats by party - PSD 105, PS 96, PP 14, PCP/PEV 12, The Left Bloc 3

Judicial branch Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal de Justica (judges appointed for life by the Conselho Superior da Magistratura)

Political parties and leaders The Greens or PEV [no leader]; Popular Party or PP [Paulo PORTAS]; Portuguese Communist Party/The Greens or PCP/PEV [Carlos CARVALHAS]; Portuguese Socialist Party or PS [Eduardo Ferro RODRIGUES]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Jose Manuel DURAO Barroso]; United Democratic Coalition or CDU [leader NA]; The Left Bloc [no leader]

Political pressure groups and leaders NA

International organization participation AfDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US
chief of mission: Ambassador Joao Alberto Bacelar ROCHA PARIS
consulate(s): Los Angeles, New Bedford (Massachusetts), Providence (Rhode Island)
consulate(s) general: Boston, New York, Newark (New Jersey), and San Francisco
FAX: [1] (202) 462-3726
telephone: [1] (202) 328-8610
chancery: 2125 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC 20008

Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission: Ambassador-designate John N. PALMER
embassy: Avenida das Forcas Armadas, 1600-081 Lisbon
mailing address: PSC 83, APO AE 09726
telephone: [351] (21) 727-3300
FAX: [351] (21) 727-9109
consulate(s): Ponta Delgada (Azores)

Flag description two vertical bands of green (hoist side, two-fifths) and red (three-fifths) with the Portuguese coat of arms centered on the dividing line

NOTE: The information regarding Portugal on this page is re-published from the 2002 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Portugal Government 2002 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Portugal Government 2002 should be addressed to the CIA.