Constitution of the Portuguese Republic (1976, as amended 2005) (excerpts related to elections) (English)
CONSTITUTION OF THE PORTUGUESE REPUBLIC
SEVENTH REVISION [2005]
Fundamental principles
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Article 2
(Democratic state based on the rule of law)
The Portuguese Republic shall be a democratic state based on the rule of law, the sovereignty of the people, plural democratic expression and organisation, respect for and the guarantee of the effective implementation of fundamental rights and freedoms, and the separation and interdependence of powers, all with a view to achieving economic, social and cultural democracy and deepening participatory democracy.
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Article 10
(Universal suffrage and political parties)
1. The people shall exercise political power by means of universal, equal, direct, secret and periodic suffrage, referendum and the other forms provided for in this Constitution.
2. Political parties shall contribute to the organisation and expression of the will of the people, with respect for the principles of national independence, the unity of the state and political democracy.
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PART I
Fundamental rights and duties
TITLE I
General principles
Article 12
(Principle of universality)
1. Every citizen shall enjoy the rights and be subject to the duties enshrined in this Constitution.
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Article 15
(Foreigners, stateless persons, European citizens)
1. Foreigners and stateless persons who fund themselves or who reside in Portugal shall enjoy the same rights and be subject to the same duties as Portuguese citizens.
2. Political rights, the exercise of public offices that are not predominantly technical in nature, and the rights that this Constitution and the law reserve exclusively to Portuguese citizens shall be excepted from the provisions of the previous paragraph.
3. With the exceptions of appointment to the offices of President of the Republic, President of the Assembly of the Republic, Prime Minister and President of any of the supreme courts, and of service in the armed forces and the diplomatic corps, in accordance with the law and subject to reciprocity, such rights as are not otherwise granted to foreigners shall apply to citizens of Portuguese-speaking states who reside permanently in Portugal.
4. Subject to reciprocity, the law may grant foreigners who reside in Portugal the right to vote for and stand for election as local councillors.
5. Subject to reciprocity, the law may also grant citizens of European Union Member States who reside in Portugal the right to vote for and stand for election as Members of the European Parliament.
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TITLE II
Rights, freedoms and guarantees
CHAPTER I
Personal rights, freedoms and guarantees
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Article 40
(Right to broadcasting time, of reply and of political response)
1. Political parties, trade unions, professional and business organisations and other organisations with a national scope shall, in accordance with their size and representativity and with objective criteria that shall be defined by law, possess the right to broadcasting time on the public radio and television service.
2. Political parties that hold one or more seats in the Assembly of the Republic and do not form part of the Government shall, as laid down by law, possess the right to broadcasting time on the public radio and television service, which shall be apportioned in accordance with each party’s proportional share of the seats in the Assembly, as well as to reply or respond politically to the Government’s political statements. Such times shall be of the same duration and prominence as those given over to the Government’s broadcasts and statements. Parties with seats in the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions shall enjoy the same rights within the ambit of the region in question.
3. During elections and as laid down by law, candidates shall possess the right to regular and equitable broadcasting time on radio and television stations with a national or regional scope.
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CHAPTER II
Rights, freedoms and guarantees concerning participation in politics
Article 48
(Participation in public life)
1. Every citizen shall possess the right to take part in political life and the direction of the country’s public affairs, either directly or via freely elected representatives.
2. Every citizen shall possess the right to be given objective clarifications about the actions of the state and of other public bodies and to be informed by the Government and other authorities about the management of public affairs.
Article 49
(Right to vote)
1. Every citizen who has attained the age of eighteen years shall possess the right to vote, save such incapacities as may be provided for in the general law.
2. The right to vote shall be exercised personally and shall constitute a civic duty.
Article 50
(Right to stand for public office)
1. Every citizen shall possess the free and equal right to stand for any public office.
2. No one shall be prejudiced in his appointments, job or professional career or the social benefits to which he is entitled, due to the exercise of political rights or the holding of public office.
3. In governing the right to stand for elected office, the law shall only determine such ineligibilities as are needed to guarantee both the electors’ freedom of choice, and independence and absence of bias in the exercise of the offices in question.
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PART III
Organisation of political power
TITLE I
General principles
Article 108
(Source and exercise of power)
Political power shall lie with the people and shall be exercised in accordance with this Constitution.
Article 109
(Citizens’ participation in politics)
The direct and active participation in politics by men and women is a fundamental instrument in the consolidation of the democratic system, and the law shall promote both equality in the exercise of civic and political rights and the absence of gender-based discrimination in access to political office.
Article 110
(Bodies that exercise sovereign power)
1. The President of the Republic, the Assembly of the Republic, the Government and the Courts shall constitute bodies that exercise sovereign power.
2. The formation, composition, responsibilities and power and modus operandi of the bodies that exercise sovereign power shall be those laid down by this Constitution.
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Article 113
(General principles of electoral law)
1. As a general rule, the officeholders of the bodies that exercise sovereign power, of regional authorities and of local authorities shall be appointed by direct, secret and periodic suffrage.
2. Without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 15(4) and (5) and 121(2), electoral registration shall be officious, compulsory and permanent and there shall be a single registration system for all elections that are held by direct, universal suffrage.
3. Election campaigns shall be governed by the following principles:
a) Freedom of propaganda;
b) Equal opportunities and treatment for all candidatures;
c) The impartiality of public bodies towards all candidatures;
d) The transparency and scrutiny of electoral accounts.
4. Citizens shall possess the duty to cooperate with the electoral authorities in such ways as the law may lay down.
5. Votes cast shall be converted into seats in accordance with the principle of proportional representation.
6. Any act which dissolves a collegiate body that is based on direct suffrage shall also set the date of a new election thereto. Such elections shall be held within the following sixty days and in accordance with the electoral law that is in force at the time of the dissolution, failing which they shall be legally invalid.
7. The power to rule on the correctness and validity of electoral acts shall pertain to the courts.
Article 114
(Political parties and right to opposition)
1. Political parties shall hold seats in the bodies that are elected by universal, direct suffrage in accordance with their proportion of election results.
2. Minorities shall possess the right to democratic opposition, as laid down by this Constitution and the law.
3. Political parties that hold seats in the Assembly of the Republic and do not form part of the Government shall particularly possess the right to be regularly and directly informed by the Government as to the situation and progress of the main matters of public interest. Political parties that hold seats in the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions or in any other directly elected assemblies shall possess the same right in relation to the respective executive, in the event that they do not form part thereof.
Article 115
(Referenda)
1. In cases provided for in, and as laid down by, this Constitution and the law, following a proposal from the Assembly of the Republic or the Government in relation to matters that fall under their respective responsibilities, the President of the Republic may decide to call upon citizens who are registered to vote in Portuguese territory to directly and bindingly pronounce themselves by referendum.
2. Referenda may also be held on the initiative of citizens who submit a request to the Assembly of the Republic. Such requests shall be submitted and considered under the terms and within the time limits laid down by law.
3. The object of a referendum shall be limited to important issues concerning the national interest upon which the Assembly of the Republic or the Government must decide by passing an international agreement or by passing legislation.
4. The following shall not be subject to referendum:
a) Alterations to this Constitution;
b) Issues and acts with a budgetary, tax-related or financial content;
c) The matters provided for in Article 161, without prejudice to the provisions of the following paragraph;
d) The matters provided for in Article 164, save the provisions of subparagraph i).
5. The provisions of the previous paragraph shall not prejudice the submission to referendum of such important issues concerning the national interest as should be the object of an international agreement pursuant to Article 161i, except when they concern peace or the rectification of borders.
6. Each referendum shall only address one matter. Questions shall be objectively, clearly and precisely formulated, shall solicit yes or no answers, and shall not exceed a maximum number to be laid down by law. The law shall also lay down the other terms governing the formulation and holding of referenda.
7. Referenda shall not be called or held between the dates on which general elections for the bodies that exercise sovereign power, elections for the self-government bodies of the autonomous regions, for local authority bodies and for Members of the European Parliament are called and those on which they are held.
8. The President of the Republic shall submit all draft referenda submitted to him by the Assembly of the Republic or the Government, to compulsory prior determination of their constitutionality and legality.
9. The provisions of Article 113(1), (2), (3), (4) and (7) shall apply to referenda, mutatis mutandis.
10. Draft referenda that are refused by the President of the Republic or are negatived by the electorate shall not be resubmitted during the same legislative session, save new elections to the Assembly of the Republic, or until the Government resigns or is removed.
11. Referenda shall only be binding in the event that the number of voters exceeds half the number of registered electors.
12. Citizens who reside abroad and are properly registered to vote under the provisions of Article 121(2) shall be called upon to take part in referenda that address matters which specifically also concern them.
13. Referenda may be regional in scope, in accordance with Article 232(2).
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Article 119
(Publicising of acts)
1. The following shall be published in the official journal – the Diário da República:
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i) The results of elections to bodies that exercise sovereign power, bodies of autonomous regions and local authority bodies, as well as to the European Parliament, and the results of national and regional referenda.
2. Failure to publicise the acts provided for in subparagraphs a) to h) of the previous paragraph and of any act of bodies that exercise sovereign power, bodies of autonomous regions and local authority bodies shall cause such acts to be without legal force.
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TITLE II
President of the Republic
CHAPTER I
Status, role and election
Article 120
(Definition)
The President of the Republic shall represent the Portuguese Republic, shall guarantee national independence, the unity of the state and the proper functioning of the democratic institutions, and shall be ex officio Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
Article 121
(Election)
1. The President of the Republic shall be elected by the universal, direct, secret suffrage of all Portuguese citizens who are registered to vote in Portuguese territory and, in accordance with the following paragraph, of all Portuguese citizens who reside abroad.
2. The law shall regulate the right to vote of Portuguese citizens who reside abroad, to which end it shall pay due regard to the existence of ties that effectively link them to the Portuguese community.
3. The right to vote in Portuguese territory shall be exercised in person.
Article 122
(Eligibility)
Citizens of Portuguese origin who are registered to vote and have attained the age of thirty-five shall be eligible for election.
Article 123
(Eligibility for re-election)
1. Re-election to a third consecutive term of office, or during the five years immediately following the end of a second consecutive term of office, shall not be permitted.
2. In the event that the President of the Republic resigns, he shall not stand again in the next elections, or in any that take place in the five years immediately following his resignation.
Article 124
(Nominations)
1. Nominations for President of the Republic shall be put forward by at least seven thousand five hundred and at most fifteen thousand registered electors.
2. Nominations shall be submitted to the Constitutional Court at least thirty days prior to the date set for the election.
3. In the event of the death of any candidate, or of any other fact that renders any candidate incapable of performing the functions of President of the Republic, the election process shall recommence under such terms as the law shall lay down.
Article 125
(Date of election)
1. The President of the Republic shall be elected during the sixty days prior to the end of his predecessor’s term of office, or during the sixty days after that office becomes vacant.
2. Elections shall not take place during the ninety days prior to or following the date of elections to the Assembly of the Republic.
3. In the case provided for in the previous paragraph, the election shall take place during the ten days following the end of the period set out therein, and the term of office of the outgoing President shall automatically be extended for the necessary period of time.
Article 126
(Electoral system)
1. The candidate who receives more than half of the validly cast votes shall be elected President of the Republic. Blank ballot papers shall not be deemed validly cast.
2. If none of the candidates obtains this number of votes, a second ballot shall be held within twenty-one days of the date of the first one.
3. Only the two candidates who received most votes in the first ballot and have not withdrawn their candidatures shall stand in the second ballot.
Article 127
(Installation and swearing in)
1. The President elect shall take office before the Assembly of the Republic.
2. His installation shall take place on the last day of the outgoing President’s term of office, or, in the case of election to a vacant office, on the eighth day following that on which the election results are published.
3. Upon taking office the President of the Republic elect shall take the following oath:
"I swear by my honour to faithfully perform the office with which I am invested and to defend and observe the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic and cause it to be observed."
Article 128
(Term of office)
1. The term of office of President of the Republic shall be five years and shall end upon installation of the new President elect.
2. In the event that the office falls vacant, the newly elected President of the Republic shall commence a new term of office.
Article 132
(Acting President)
1. In the event that the President of the Republic is temporarily unable to perform his functions, or that the office is vacant and until such time as the new President elect is installed, his functions shall be performed by the President of the Assembly of the Republic, or, in the event that the latter is unable to do so, by his substitute.
2. For such time as he acts as acting President of the Republic, the President of the Assembly of the Republic or his substitute’s mandate as Member of the Assembly shall automatically be suspended.
3. The President of the Republic shall retain the rights and privileges inherent to his office during such time as he is temporarily unable to perform his functions.
4. An acting President of the Republic shall enjoy all the honours and prerogatives of the office, but his rights shall be those of the office to which he was elected.
CHAPTER II
Responsibilities
Article 133
(Responsibilities in relation to other bodies)
In relation to other bodies the President of the Republic shall be responsible for:
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b) In accordance with electoral law, setting the date for elections for President of the Republic, Members of the Assembly of the Republic, Members of the European Parliament and members of the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions;
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TITLE III
Assembly of the Republic
CHAPTER I
Status, role and election
Article 147
(Definition)
The Assembly of the Republic shall be the assembly that represents all Portuguese citizens.
Article 148
(Composition)
The Assembly of the Republic shall possess a minimum of one hundred and eighty and a maximum of two hundred and thirty Members, as laid down by electoral law.
Article 149
(Constituencies)
1. Members shall be elected for constituencies that shall be geographically defined by law. The law may create plurinominal and uninominal constituencies and lay down the nature and complementarity thereof, all in such a way as to ensure that votes are converted into seats in accordance with the proportional representation system and using d’Hondt’s highest-average rule.
2. With the exception of the national constituency, if any, the number of Members for each plurinominal constituency in Portuguese territory shall be proportional to the number of citizens registered to vote therein.
Article 150
(Eligibility)
Save such restrictions as electoral law may lay down in relation to local incompatibilities or the exercise of certain offices, all Portuguese citizens who are registered to vote shall be eligible for election.
Article 151
(Nominations)
1. Nominations shall be submitted by political parties as laid down by law. Parties may submit such nominations individually or in coalition and their lists of candidates may include citizens who are not registered members of any of the parties in question.
2. No one shall be a candidate for more than one constituency of the same nature, with the exception of the national constituency, if any. No one may appear on more than one list.
Article 152
(Political representation)
1. The law shall not limit the conversion of votes into seats by requiring a minimum national percentage of votes cast.
2. Members shall represent the whole country and not the constituencies for which they are elected.
Article 153
(Beginning and end of term of office)
1. Members’ terms of office shall commence upon the first sitting of the Assembly of the Republic following elections thereto and shall end upon the first sitting following the subsequent elections thereto, without prejudice to the suspension or termination of any individual mandate.
2. Electoral law shall regulate the filling of vacancies that arise in the Assembly and, in cases in which there are important grounds for doing so, the temporary substitution of Members.
Article 156
(Members’ powers)
Members shall have the following powers:
a) To submit draft amendments to the Constitution;
b) To submit Member’s bills, draft amendments to the Rules of Procedure, draft resolutions, particularly in relation to referenda, and draft decisions, and to request that they be scheduled for debate;
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CHAPTER II
Responsibilities
Article 161
(Political and legislative responsibilities)
The Assembly of the Republic shall be responsible for:
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b) Passing the political and administrative statutes of the autonomous regions and the laws governing the election of the members of their Legislative Assemblies;
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j) Proposing to the President of the Republic that important issues of national interest be submitted to referendum;
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Article 164
(Exclusive responsibility to legislate)
The Assembly of the Republic shall possess exclusive responsibility to legislate on the following matters:
a) Elections to bodies that exercise sovereign power;
b) Rules to be used in referenda;
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h) Political associations and parties;
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j) The election of members of the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions;
l) The election of local government officeholders and other elections conducted by direct, universal suffrage, as well as elections to the remaining constitutional bodies;
m) The status and role of the officeholders of bodies that exercise sovereign power and local government officeholders, as well as of the officeholders of the remaining constitutional bodies and of all those who are elected by direct, universal suffrage;
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Article 167
(Initiative in relation to legislation and referenda)
1. The power to initiate legislation and referenda shall lie with Members, parliamentary groups and the Government, and also, subject to the terms and conditions laid down by law, with groups of registered electors. The power to initiate legislation in relation to the autonomous regions shall lie with the respective Legislative Assembly.
2. No Member, parliamentary group, Legislative Assembly of an autonomous region or group of registered electors shall submit bills or draft amendments which, during the then current financial year, involve an increase in the state’s expenditure or a decrease in its revenues as set out in the Budget.
3. No Member, parliamentary group or group of registered electors shall submit draft referenda which, during the then current financial year, involve an increase in the state’s expenditure or a decrease in its revenues as set out in the Budget.
4. Bills and draft referenda that are definitively rejected may not be resubmitted in the same legislative session, unless a new Assembly of the Republic is elected.
5. Bills and draft referenda that are not put to the vote in the legislative session in which they are submitted shall not require resubmission in the following legislative sessions, unless the legislature itself comes to an end.
6. Government bills and draft referenda shall lapse upon the resignation or removal of the Government.
7. Government bills that are initiated by Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions shall lapse at the end of the respective legislature, save in the event that their general principles have already been passed, in which case they shall only lapse upon the end of the legislature of the Assembly of the Republic.
8. Without prejudice to the bills and draft referenda to which they refer, unless they are withdrawn, parliamentary committees may submit replacement texts therefore.
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CHAPTER III
Responsibilities
Article 197
(Political responsibilities)
1. In the exercise of its political functions the Government shall be responsible for:
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e) In accordance with Article 115, proposing to the President of the Republic that important matters of national interest be subjected to referendum;
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TITLE VI
Constitutional Court
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Article 223
(Responsibilities)
1. The Constitutional Court shall assess cases of unconstitutionality and illegality in accordance with Articles 277 et sequitur.
2. The Constitutional Court shall also be responsible for:
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c) Issuing rulings of final instance on the proper conduct and validity of electoral acts, as laid down by law;
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e) Verifying the legality of the formation of political parties and coalitions thereof, assessing the legality of their names, initials and symbols, and ordering their abolition, all as laid down by this Constitution and the law;
f) Verifying in advance the constitutionality and legality of national, regional and local referenda, including assessment of requirements in relation to the electors in each case;
g) At the request of Members and as laid down by law, ruling on appeals concerning losses of seat and elections held by the Assembly of the Republic and the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions;
h) Ruling on such cases involving the impugnation of elections within, and the decisions taken by, political parties as by law are subject to appeal.
3. The Constitutional Court shall also perform such other functions as are conferred upon it by this Constitution and the law.
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TITLE VII
Autonomous Regions
Article 225
(Political and administrative system in the Azores and Madeira)
1. The specific political and administrative system applicable in the Azores and Madeira archipelagos shall be based on their geographic, economic, social and cultural characteristics and on the island populations’ historic aspirations to autonomy.
2. The autonomy of the regions is designed to ensure their citizens’ democratic participation, economic and social development and the promotion and defence of regional interests, as well as the strengthening of national unity and of the bonds of solidarity between all Portuguese.
3. Regional political and administrative autonomy shall not affect the integrity of the sovereignty of the state and shall be exercised within the overall framework of this Constitution.
Article 226
(Statutes and electoral laws)
1. Draft political and administrative statutes and government bills concerning the election of members of the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions shall be drawn up by the said Legislative Assemblies and sent to the Assembly of the Republic for discussion and passage or rejection.
2. If the Assembly of the Republic rejects or amends such a draft or bill, it shall return it to the respective Legislative Assembly for consideration and the issue of an opinion.
3. Once the opinion has been drawn up, the Assembly of the Republic shall put the draft or bill to final discussion and the vote.
4. The system provided for in the previous paragraphs shall apply to amendments to the political and administrative statutes and the laws governing the election of members of the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions.
Article 227
(Powers of the autonomous regions)
1.The autonomous regions shall be territorial bodies corporate and shall posses the following powers, which shall be defined in their statutes:
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e) To initiate statutes and to initiate legislation concerning the election of members of the respective Legislative Assemblies pursuant to Article 226;
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Article 231
(Self-government bodies of the autonomous regions)
1. Each autonomous region shall have self-government bodies in the form of a Legislative Assembly and a Regional Government.
2. Legislative Assemblies shall be elected by universal, direct and secret suffrage in accordance with the principle of proportional representation.
3. Each Regional Government shall be politically responsible to the Legislative Assembly of its autonomous region, and the Representative of the Republic shall appoint its president in the light of the results of the regional elections.
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Article 232
(Responsibilities of Legislative Assemblies of autonomous regions)
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2. The Legislative Assembly of each autonomous region shall be responsible for submitting draft regional referenda by means of which the President of the Republic may call upon the citizens who are registered to vote in the region’s territory to pronounce in binding fashion on questions that are of important specific interest to the region. The provisions of Article 115 shall apply to such referenda, mutatis mutandis.
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TITLE VIII
Local government
CHAPTER I
General principles
Article 235
(Local authorities)
1. The democratic organisational structure of the state shall include local authorities.
2. Local authorities shall be territorial bodies corporate, shall possess representative bodies and shall seek to pursue the interests of the local people.
Article 236
(Categories of local authority and administrative division)
1. On the mainland, local authorities shall comprise parishes, municipalities and administrative regions.
2. The Azores and Madeira autonomous regions shall comprise parishes and municipalities.
3. In large urban areas and on the islands the law may create other forms of local government organisation in accordance with the specific conditions prevailing therein or on.
4. The law shall lay down the manner in which Portuguese territory is to be divided for administrative purposes.
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Article 239
(Decision-making and executive bodies)
1. The organisational structures of local authorities shall comprise an elected assembly with decision-making powers, and a collegiate executive body that shall be answerable to the assembly.
2. Assemblies shall be elected by universal, direct and secret suffrage of the citizens who are registered to vote in the area of the local authority in question, in accordance with the proportional representation system.
3. The collegiate executive body shall be composed of an adequate number of members. The first candidate on the list that receives the most votes cast shall be appointed president of the assembly or executive, depending on and in accordance with the solution adopted by law. The law shall also regulate the electoral process, the requirements governing the formation and removal of the assembly and the collegiate executive body, and their proceedings and operation.
4. Nominations for election to local authority bodies may be submitted by political parties, either individually or in coalition, or by groups of registered electors, all as laid down by law.
Article 240
(Local referenda)
1. In such cases, under such terms and with such effect as the law may lay down, local authorities may submit matters that are included within the responsibilities of the local authority bodies to referendum by those of their citizens who are registered to vote.
2. The law may grant the right to initiate referenda to registered electors.
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CHAPTER III
Municipalities
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Article 250
(Municipal bodies)
A municipality’s representative bodies shall be the municipal assembly and the municipal authority.
Article 251
(Municipal assemblies)
The municipal assembly shall be its municipality’s decision-making body and shall be composed of directly elected members and the presidents of the municipality’s parish authorities. The number of directly elected members shall be greater than that of the presidents of the parish authorities.
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CHAPTER IV
Administrative regions
Article 255
(Creation by law)
The administrative regions shall be created simultaneously by means of a law, which shall define their powers and the composition, responsibilities and proceedings of their bodies and may lay down differences between the rules applicable to each administrative region.
Article 256
(De facto institution)
1. The de facto institution of the administrative regions by means of the individual laws instituting each one shall depend on the law provided for in the previous Article, and on the casting of an affirmative vote by the majority of the registered electors who cast their votes in a direct national ballot covering each of the regional areas.
2. In the event that the majority of the registered electors who cast their votes do not respond in the affirmative to a question with a national scope on the de facto institution of the administrative regions, the answers to such questions as may be put in relation to each region that is created by the law shall not take effect.
3. The consultation of registered electors provided for in the previous paragraphs shall take place in accordance with the provisions of an organisational law and by decision of the President of the Republic, upon a proposal from the Assembly of the Republic. The system derived from Article 115 shall apply mutatis mutandis.
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Article 259
(Regional bodies)
The regional assembly and the regional authority shall be an administrative region’s representative bodies.
Article 260
(Regional assemblies)
The regional assembly shall be its region’s decision-making body. It shall be composed of directly elected members, and by a smaller number of members who shall be elected in accordance with the proportional representation system and using d’Hondt’s highest-average rule, by an electoral college formed by those members of the same area’s municipal assemblies who were appointed by direct election.
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Final and transitional provisions
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Article 295
(Referendum on European Treaty)
The provisions of Article 115(3) shall not prejudice the possibility of calling and holding a referendum on the approval of a treaty aimed at the construction and deepening of the European Union.
Article 296
(Date and entry into force of the Constitution)
1. The Constitution of the Portuguese Republic shall bear the date of its passage by the Constituent Assembly: 2 April 1976.
2. The Constitution of the Portuguese Republic shall come into force on 25 April 1976.