Chega voted against, and CDS and IL also distanced themselves in the vote on the bills from PSD, PS, BE and Livre.
Bills on stateless people advance to committee stage without consensus among right-wing parties
Friday, 9 January 2026RSS
Context & Explainers
The Assembly of the Republic (Assembleia da República) is Portugal's unicameral parliament, located in the Palácio de São Bento in Lisbon. It consists of 230 deputies elected by proportional representation for four-year terms.
The Assembly's powers include making and amending laws, approving the state budget, ratifying international treaties, and overseeing the government through debates, hearings, and committees. It can also pass votes of no confidence to bring down a government, as happened in March 2025.
Following the May 2025 elections, the current parliamentary composition is led by the Democratic Alliance (AD) with the largest share of seats, followed by Chega, PS, and smaller parties including the Liberal Initiative, Left Bloc, Livre, and PCP.
Statelessness (apatridia) means a person is not considered a national by any country under its laws, leaving them without a passport or an automatic right to reside. That status often prevents access to education, healthcare, employment and social services, so parliamentary discussion can lead to laws or procedures to identify stateless people and give them legal protection or a pathway to residency.
