Portuguese Ministers, 1851–1999: Social Background and Paths to Power

Pinto, António Costa

doi:10.1080/13608740708539625

Cited by 13 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Approximately 23 per cent are in the age group of 30-39 years. Moreover, the median age of ministers in the last 30 years, as noted by Tavares de Almeida and Costa Pinto (2003), is the lowest in Western Europe (2003, pp. 20-29).…”

Section: Administration and Bureaucracymentioning

confidence: 97%

The government in two semi-presidential systems: France and Portugal in a comparative perspective

Passarelli

2010

Fr Polit

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France and Portugal have the same form of semi-presidential government. Even though the powers of their respective presidents and their political systems have been extensively investigated, the literature on the role of government operations is less comprehensive. This article analyses the organization of the government, focusing on how semi-presidential governments function and highlighting the recruitment and background of ministers, as well as the role of the president and prime minister. Semi-presidential governments function differently according to the degree of concordance between the presidential and the parliamentary majorities -in other words, whether or not there is cohabitation. The organization of government can be hierarchical or collegial, depending on the balance of power between the two heads of the executive.

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Section: Administration and Bureaucracymentioning

confidence: 97%

The government in two semi-presidential systems: France and Portugal in a comparative perspective

Passarelli

2010

Fr Polit

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“…First, the present analysis is meant to consider any technocratic government, and not in particular those that happened during the Eurocrisis. Technocratic governments appointed in the past have been of the presidential kind (De Almeida and Pinto, 2002;Kuusisto, 1958;Lobo, 2001;Neto and Lobo, 2009;Nousiainen, 1988) -namely those whose appointment can be easily traced back to the head of state. Therefore the 'imposition' -if one can still call it an imposition -is coming from within the democratic system, and not from without.…”

Section: A Break In the Chain Of Delegationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Technocratic Governments in Europe: Getting the Critique Right

Pastorella

2015

Political Studies

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In Europe, technocratic governments have become a popular topic of debate. Commentators have condemned them as a 'suspension of democracy' or even as 'the end of democracy as we know it'. However, no academic analysis has assessed whether technocratic governments are indeed undemocratic. This article is intended to fill this gap by assessing technocratic governments' democratic credentials. It compares them to party governments along the main dimensions of party democracy, including representation, deliberation, constitutionality and legitimacy. It concludes that technocratic governments in Europe are not undemocratic per se, but are still a worrying phenomenon insofar as they reveal shortcomings that remain hidden in normal party governments: a loosening of delegation and accountability ties between voters, parties and cabinets; increasing external pressures on domestic political actors; and the weakening of partisan ideology-based politics. The article will add further elements to reinforce the already vast literature on the crisis of -especially party -democracy in Europe.Keywords: democracy; technocracy; Eurocrisis; technocratic government; political party Technocratic governments, while not a new phenomenon on the European political scene, seem to have become a particularly widespread form of government recently. A comparatively high number of technocratic governments, as defined by Duncan McDonnell and Marco Valbruzzi (2014), have been appointed since the beginning of the Eurocrisis.1 It is therefore the right moment to ask a fundamental question: Are technocratic governments democratic? More specifically, do technocratic governments meet the standards of democracy as it is understood in Europe -that is, party democracy (Mair, 2008;Van Biezen, 2012;Van Biezen and Borz, 2012)? Common sense, even etymology, would seem to indicate that technocracy is, by definition, incompatible with any democracy. It generally partners well with autocracy. Together with populism they are the Scylla and Charybdis of democratic ideals. Technocratic governments even made some commentator mourn the 'end of democracy as we know it' (Brunkhorst, 2012). It is not clear, however, whether such accusations rest on any stable grounds, either in terms of democratic theory or democratic practice. Exploring such matters is important, on the one hand, to fully understand an under-explored political phenomenon -that of technocratic cabinets -and, on the other hand and more importantly, to add an additional perspective to assessing the status of European democracies. This article will therefore proceed as follows. After clarifying some of the terminology and concepts used, it will address major criticisms aimed at technocratic governments, touching upon problems related to constitutionality, electoral competition, policy choices, accountability and legitimacy. It will show that technocratic governments have been criticised on wrong assumptions or judged against unrealistic democratic standards. In the second part, the article will id...

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“…During the First Republic small villages and towns were the birthplace of almost three--fifths of ministers and of all directors-general. As hypothesised elsewhere, this geographical profile may be related with the lower social origins of the new ruling elite (57) . It should be stressed that an unprecedented and sizeable minority of Republican ministers of the Colonies (11%) were born in the overseas territories (see Table 4).…”

Section: Prosopography Of the Political And Administrative Heads Of Tmentioning

confidence: 97%

Ruling the empire: the Portuguese colonial office (1820s-1926)

Almeida

2006

RHI

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Portuguese Ministers, 1851–1999: Social Background and Paths to Power

Cited by 13 publications

References 13 publications

The government in two semi-presidential systems: France and Portugal in a comparative perspective

The government in two semi-presidential systems: France and Portugal in a comparative perspective

Technocratic Governments in Europe: Getting the Critique Right

Ruling the empire: the Portuguese colonial office (1820s-1926)

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