Newcomer Volt Portugal aims for the center and wants to elect two deputies
In the first time it runs for new legislative elections, Volt Portugal will try to elect two deputies and seek the votes of voters who identify with the political center and those who are discontented.
“I’m not so interested in the origin of the vote, I’m interested that when people vote for the Volt they know what our proposal is and identify with it. If they previously voted for party Y or Z, I think it’s a little indifferent, but naturally or tending to, our vote will come more from the center-left area of the center-right, “said Tiago Matos Gomes, president of the Volt, in an interview with Lusa, regarding the legislative changes of January 30th.
Tiago Matos Gomes expressed his desire to elect two deputies and admitted as “satisfactory but not sufficient” to be the most voted party of the parties that do not obtain parliamentary representation.
“This has already happened in the case of Lisbon in the local authorities, so we already have this launching base for the legislative ones”, he considered.
Volt Portugal “does not fit that dichotomy of left and right” and wants the votes of the center and disaffected voters, characterized.
The bet on renewable energies, a “debate on nuclear”, the defense of the National Health Service to “be sustainable and have better services”, an educational reform so that young people leave school prepared “for the challenges they will face later in adulthood “are the Volt’s priorities.
The Volt leader also highlighted the fight against corruption with the help of a “European institution for the Portuguese judicial system”, as one of the priority measures.
On the political crisis that led to the anticipation of legislative changes, Tiago Matos Gomes considered “a profound irresponsibility at a time like this to bring down a Government”, arguing that “it is bad for stability” and “negative fundamental” when the country is experiencing a pandemic.
Volt Portugal is running for 19 of the 22 constituencies and, “if the pandemic allows”, the president wants to “travel across the country, with ‘flyers’, with human contact” to “talk about the party and what has to be done new to present “stating that I would like an election campaign” in a positive way, not against anyone, but to add value “.
As for the management of the covid-19 pandemic, Volt Portugal considers the vaccination process “a success”, which was made possible thanks to the “massive purchase of vaccines by the European Union and distribution to member states” and also the adhesion of the Portuguese.
Volt Europe is a federalist and “pan-European” party that emerged internationally as a movement in March 2017, in reaction to the ‘Brexit’, initiated by a collective of students in the USA. Andrea Venzon is the founder of this movement, which is already a political party in several European countries, namely in Portugal, Germany, Bulgaria, Belgium, Spain, Netherlands, Italy, Austria, Luxembourg, Denmark, France, United Kingdom or Sweden.
The movement emerged in Portugal on December 28, 2017 and was made official as a political party by the Constitutional Court in June 2020.