The Democratic Party (, ), officially known as the Portuguese Republican Party ( ), was a Portuguese

centre-left Centre-left politics lean to the left on the left–right political spectrum but are closer to the centre than other left-wing politics. Those on the centre-left believe in working within the established systems to improve social justice. The ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

during the

Portuguese First Republic The First Portuguese Republic ( pt, Primeira República Portuguesa; officially: ''República Portuguesa'', Portuguese Republic) spans a complex 16-year period in the history of Portugal, between the end of the period of constitutional monarchy ...

. It was also the self-proclaimed successor to the original Portuguese Republican Party, which had been behind the

revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

that established the Portuguese First Republic in 1910. The name "Democratic Party" was never the official name of the party, as the Portuguese Republican Party never ceased to exist. However, the party was ''de facto'' different and thus the other parties (that belonged to the PRP before 1910) used the new expression to assert their opposition to the claim of continuation of the PRP by Afonso Costa, the first leader of the Democratic Party. Other names were given to the members of the Democratic Party, like the Afonsists, named after Afonso Costa.

History

When the Evolutionists and Unionists seceded from the Portuguese Republican Party in February 1912, the Democratic Party declared itself the latter party's heir. It soon controlled its electoral and propagandistic structure, a fact that would influence the dominance of the Democratic Party during the First Republic. During the First Republic, the Democratic Party, led by Afonso Costa, managed to hold power despite suffering several revolutionary attempts, both

monarchist Monarchism is the advocacy of the system of monarchy or monarchical rule. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government independently of any specific monarch, whereas one who supports a particular monarch is a royalist. ...

and republican. Although some of the coups partially succeeded ( Monarchy of the North,

Pimenta de Castro Joaquim Pereira Pimenta de Castro, 10th Count of Pimenta de Castro (5 November 1846, in Pias, Monção – 14 May 1918, in Lisbon; ) was a Portuguese army officer and politician. He was a career military officer reaching the position of General, ...

Sidónio Pais Sidónio Bernardino Cardoso da Silva Pais (; 1 May 1872 – 14 December 1918) was a Portuguese politician, military officer, and diplomat, who served as the fourth president of the First Portuguese Republic in 1918. One of the most di ...

) the Democratic Party always managed to retain power. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, in which Portugal participated, the party entered a coalition government with the Evolutionist Party called "

Sacred Union The Sacred Union (french: Union Sacrée, ) was a political truce in France in which the left-wing agreed, during World War I, not to oppose the government or call any strikes. Made in the name of patriotism, it stood in opposition to the pledge mad ...

", to face the problems of the war. Following the war, discontent grew and the union was eventually dissolved. Sidónio took advantage of this and established a dictatorial government of his

National Republican Party The National Republican Party, also known as the Anti-Jacksonian Party or simply Republicans, was a political party in the United States that evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of the Democratic-Republican Party that supported John ...

. Sidónio Pais was assassinated 14 December 1918. By 1919 the Democratic Party was again in power. After 1919, with Afonso Costa in Paris, the party was led by António Maria da Silva. In the next phase of the party's existence, political, popular and

syndicalist Syndicalism is a revolutionary current within the left-wing of the labor movement that seeks to unionize workers according to industry and advance their demands through strikes with the eventual goal of gaining control over the means of pro ...

opposition created a climate of constant revolt. Groups also seceded from the party, with the creation of the Democratic Leftwing Republican Party and the Reformist Party, both on the Left.

Relations with the Republic

The identification of the First Republic with the Democratic Party was so close, as the party dominated all political life between 1911 and 1926, that

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa Marcelo Nuno Duarte Rebelo de Sousa (; born 12 December 1948) is a Portuguese politician and academic. He is the 20th and current president of Portugal, since 9 March 2016. He is a member of the Social Democratic Party, though he suspended hi ...

described it as a "

multi-party system In political science, a multi-party system is a political system in which multiple political parties across the political spectrum run for national elections, and all have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in co ...

with a dominant party" and historian Fernando Rosas called it a "political monopoly" and a "democratic dictatorship".

Prime ministers

Augusto de Vasconcelos Augusto César de Almeida de Vasconcelos Correia, GCSE (24 September 1867 – 27 September 1951), better known as Augusto de Vasconcelos () was a Portuguese surgeon, politician and diplomat, who served as 57th Prime Minister of Portugal. Ca ...

(1911–1912) * Duarte Leite (1912–1913) * Afonso Costa (1913–1914; 1915–1916; 1917 — in coalition with the Evolutionists acred Union *

Bernardino Machado Bernardino Luís Machado Guimarães, GCTE, GCL (; 28 March 1851, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – 29 April 1944, Porto, Portugal), was a Portuguese political figure, the third and eighth president of Portugal (1915–17, 1925–26). In 1917 ...

(1914; 1921) *

Victor Hugo de Azevedo Coutinho Victor Hugo de Azevedo Coutinho, 18th Count of Azevedo GCC, GCA (12 November 1871–27 June 1955), was a Portuguese naval officer, politician and professor, at the University of Coimbra and later the Escola Naval (Naval School). He was a member ...

(1914–1915) * António José de Almeida — Evolutionists in coalition ( acred Union — (1916–1917) *

José Relvas José Maria de Mascarenhas Relvas de Campos ( Golegã, Golegã, 5 March 1858 – Alpiarça, Casa dos Patudos, 31 October 1929; , was a Portuguese politician and 70th Prime Minister of Portugal. = Personal life = Jose was in spouse with Eugén ...

(1919) *

Domingos Pereira Domingos Leite Pereira (; 19 September 1882 – 27 October 1956) was a Portuguese politician of the Portuguese First Republic. He had degrees in theology and literature of the University of Coimbra. He helped to improve the relationships betwee ...

(1919; 1920; 1925) *

Alfredo de Sá Cardoso Alfredo Ernesto de Sá Cardoso (6 June 1864 – 24 April 1950), commonly known as Alfredo de Sá Cardoso (), or just Sá Cardoso, was a Portuguese republican politician of the Portuguese First Republic who served twice as Prime Minister of Portuga ...

(1919–1920; 1920) *

António Maria Baptista António Maria Baptista (; 5 January 1866 – 6 June 1920) was a Portuguese military officer and politician.Pedro Figueiredo Leal, Manuel Baiôa''António Maria Baptista: O bejense que chefiou o Governo.''In: ''Diario do Alentejo,'' March 11, 20 ...

(1920) * José Ramos Preto (1920) * António Maria da Silva (1920; 1922–1923; 1925; 1925–1926) *

Liberato Pinto Liberato Damião Ribeiro Pinto ComTE, ComC, ComA, ComSE, ( Lisbon, 29 September 1880 – Lisbon, 4 August 1949) was a Portuguese Lieutenant Colonel of the Republican National Guard (''Guarda Nacional Republicana'', GNR), politician and ...

(1920–1921) * Alfredo Rodrigues Gaspar (1924) *

Vitorino Guimarães Vitorino Máximo de Carvalho Guimarães (Penafiel, 13 November 1876 – 18 October 1957) was a Portuguese economist and politician. He was the son of João Antunes de Sousa Guimarães and Amélia Augusta de Carvalho.http://www.geneall.net/P/per ...

(1925)

Presidents of the Republic

Manuel de Arriaga Manuel José de Arriaga Brum da Silveira e Peyrelongue (; 8 July 1840 – 5 March 1917) was a Portuguese lawyer, the first attorney-general and the first elected president of the First Portuguese Republic, following the deposition of King Man ...

(1911–1915) *

Teófilo Braga Joaquim Teófilo Fernandes Braga (; 24 February 1843 – 28 January 1924) was a Portuguese writer, playwright, politician and the leader of the Republican Provisional Government after the overthrow of King Manuel II, as well as the second ele ...

(1915) *

(1915–1918; 1925–1926) *

Manuel Teixeira Gomes Manuel Teixeira Gomes, GCSE (; 27 May 1860 – 18 October 1941) was a Portuguese politician and writer. He served as the seventh president of Portugal between 5 October 1923 and 11 December 1925. Personal life Manuel Teixeira Gomes was born ...

(1923–1925)

History

Relations with the Republic

Prime ministers

Presidents of the Republic

See also