The Council of State ( pt, Conselho de Estado, ) is a body established by the

Portuguese Constitution The present Constitution of Portugal was adopted in 1976 after the Carnation Revolution. It was preceded by a number of constitutions including the first one created in 1822 (following the Liberal Revolution of 1820), 1826 (drawn up by King ...

to advise the President of the Republic in the exercise of many of his or her discretionary powers.

History

Although there are notices about the existence of a Council of State in Portugal before 1385, the first permanent regiment for its functioning was established by King Sebastian through his charter of 8 September 1569. The Council of State continued to exist after the establishment of the Constitutional Monarchy in 1821. It was foreseen in the Portuguese Constitutions of 1822, 1826 and

1838 Events January–March * January 10 – A fire destroys Lloyd's Coffee House and the Royal Exchange in London. * January 11 – At Morristown, New Jersey, Samuel Morse, Alfred Vail and Leonard Gale give the first public demonstration o ...

. After the

5 October 1910 revolution The 5 October 1910 revolution was the overthrow of the centuries-old List of Portuguese monarchs, Portuguese monarchy and its replacement by the First Portuguese Republic. It was the result of a ''coup d'état'' organized by the Portuguese Repub ...

that established the Republic in Portugal, the Council of State was abolished, not being foreseen in the Constitution of 1911. The Council of State was reestablished by the Constitution of 1933. It was again not foreseen by the Constitution of 1976. However, it was reestablished in 1984, following the revision of the Constitution of 1982.

Role

Besides summoning and advising the President whenever asked to do so by him/her, according to the Constitution the Council must be summoned by the President before: * dissolving the Assembly of the Republic and the Legislative Assemblies of the autonomous regions; * declaring war and making peace, and * removing the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...

. It must also be summoned by the acting President before: * setting the date for any

election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operat ...

; * calling an extraordinary sitting of the

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

; * appointing the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

; * appointing and discharging, upon a proposal from the Govt., the President of the

Court of Auditors The European Court of Auditors (ECA; French: ''Cour des comptes européenne'') is one of the seven institutions of the European Union (EU). It was established in 1975 in Luxembourg in order to improve EU financial management. It has 27 members ( ...

, the Attorney General and the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces (CGSAF); * appointing and discharging, upon a proposal from the Govt. and after consulting the CGSAF, an eventual Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces and the Chiefs of Staff of the three armed services; * exercising the functions of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces; * appointing ambassadors and extraordinary envoys (upon a proposal from the Govt.), and * accrediting foreign diplomatic representatives.

Counsellor of State

Membership

According to article 142 of the Constitution, the Council is composed of the following members, known as Counsellors of State: *''

Ex officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...

'' members, who remain in office for as long as they hold office: ** President of the Portuguese Republic (chair the Council) **President of the Assembly of the Republic **

**President of the

Constitutional Court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ...

Ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

of the

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

Regional Government **

of the

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

Regional Government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-l ...

** Former elected Presidents of the Republic *Five members designated by the President of the Republic, whose office ends with the term of office of the President of the Republic that appointed them. *Five members elected by the Assembly of the Republic, whose membership expires at the end of the legislature.

Taking Office and Term Limits

The members of the Council of State are sworn in by the President of the Republic. Members of the Council of State designated by the President and the Assembly of the Republic remain in office until the members who replace them in their respective positions take office.

Immunity

Councillors of State enjoy immunity as a sign of the highest honour of the office they hold. Thus, a Councillor of State may only be brought before a court with the prior authorisation of the Council, which waives his immunity. Unlike the immunity of the Members of the Assembly of the Republic, which must be waived when the crime in question is punishable by a sentence of more than 3 years imprisonment, the decision of the Council of State regarding the waiver of immunity of one of its members is free. In case of refusal the suspected member only answers in Court when he ceases to be a Councillor of State.

Current Counsellors of State

Former Counsellors of State

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, - ,

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(1996-2006) ,

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References

Government of Portugal Politics of Portugal Advisory councils for heads of state