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LIVRE[15] (L; lit. 'FREE'), previously known as LIVRE/Tempo de Avançar[16] (lit. 'FREE/Time to Move Forward', L/TDA), is a green political party in Portugal founded in 2014. Its founding principles are ecology, universalism, freedom, equity, solidarity, socialism and Europeanism.[17]
FREE LIVRE | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | L |
| Spokesperson | Rui Tavares |
| Founded | 31 January 2014 |
| Legalised | 20 March 2014 |
| Headquarters | Praça Olegário Mariano, n.º 5, 2.º esq. 1170–278 Lisbon |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Left-wing[7][10] |
| European affiliation |
|
| European Parliament group | Greens/EFA[13] |
| Colours | Green and red |
| Assembly of the Republic | 4 / 230 [14]
|
| European Parliament | 0 / 21 |
| Regional parliaments | 0 / 104 |
| Local government (Mayors) | 1 / 308 |
| Local government (Parishes) | 17 / 3,066 |
| Election symbol | |
.png) | |
| Party flag | |
 | |
| Website | |
| partidolivre | |
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In 2011, Left Bloc MEP Rui Tavares departed the party due to disagreements with coordinator Francisco Louçã and began sitting as an independent in European Parliament.[18] Tavares also left the Left Bloc's European Parliament group, GUE-NGL, and began sitting with Greens–European Free Alliance.
In 2014, ahead of that year's European elections, Tavares formed Livre. Its founding congress was 31 January.[19] The party was legalised by the Portuguese Constitutional Court on 20 March 2014.[20] On 20 May 2015, it officially changed its name LIVRE to LIVRE/Tempo de Avançar, with L/TDA as its abbreviation.[21] It switched back to its original name a few years later. Its symbol is a poppy.
In the 2019 legislative election, the party firstly entered parliament, with Joacine Katar Moreira as their sole MP.[22] After several clashes between Katar Moreira and the party's leadership, including accusations that LIVRE only used her to achieve the state mandated subvention due to her being a black woman,[23] the party expelled her from their caucus on 31 January 2020, losing all representation in the Assembly of the Republic.[24]
During the campaign for the 2022 legislative election, Rui Tavares, once again the main candidate from LIVRE, was able to appear in the televised debates due to the party having elected one MP during the previous election.[25] Rui Tavares was elected as the party's sole MP, with LIVRE regaining representation in parliament.[26]
During the 2024 legislative election, LIVRE increased their result to 3.2% and elected 4 MPs: Rui Tavares, Isabel Mendes Lopes (who became the first Parliamentary leader of LIVRE), Jorge Pinto and Paulo Muacho.[27]
In the same year, LIVRE selected Francisco Paupério as the main candidate for the 2024 European Parliament election after his victory in the party primaries, a result that caused some internal turmoil in the party after allegations of electoral fraud.[citation needed][15] Rui Tavares was later criticized for not being present in the party's campaign for the European elections.[16] In the end, LIVRE achieved 3.8% of the votes, their best result so far, but failed to elect any MEPs.[19]
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Structure
The party's political responsibilities are divided between two main organs, both elected for two-year terms in the party congress: the Contact Group, composed of 15 people elected through lists and which are responsible for the Executive functioning of the party; the Assembly, composed of 50 people (with gender parity) elected through individual candidacies, responsible for determining the political positioning of the party. Unlike most parties in the Portuguese landscape, LIVRE does not have a determined leadership role, having rotating roles such a male-female Spokespeople duo from the Contact Group and a Coordinator of the Board of the Assembly. Given that both organs have term-limits and no person can be in one organ more than three consecutive terms, they are considered as rotative roles. [28]
Leadership positions
| Mandate | Co-Spokesperson for the Contact Group | Co-Spokesperson for the Contact Group | Coordinator of the Board of the Assembly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024– | Rui Tavares | Isabel Mendes Lopes | Patrícia Gonçalves |
| 2022–2024 | Rui Tavares | Teresa Mota | Patrícia Gonçalves |
| 2020–2022 | Pedro Mendonça | Isabel Mendes Lopes | José Manuel Azevedo |
| 2018–2020 | Ana Natário | ||
| 2016–2018 | Rui Tavares | ||
| 2014–2016 | Marta Loja Neves |
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One of the main points of the party's manifesto going into the 2022 Portuguese legislative election was support for a universal basic income.[29] The party also highlighted its support for increasing the national minimum wage to €1,000 per month, extending support for: remote working, pregnant workers, workers with health problems, caregivers and supporting "micro-businesses". The party also supports a Green New Deal for Portugal, lowering VAT from 23% to 6% on vets and pet food, banning bullfighting and legalising cannabis.[30][31]
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Assembly of the Republic
Vote share in the Portuguese legislative elections
| Election | Main candidate | Votes | % | Seats | +/- | Government | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Rui Tavares | 39,330 | 0.7 (#9) | 0 / 230 |
New | No seats | |
| 2019 | Joacine Katar Moreira | 56,940 | 1.1 (#9) | 1 / 230 0 / 230 |
 1 1 |
Opposition | Joacine Katar Moreira was expelled from the LIVRE caucus in January 2020. |
| No seats | |||||||
| 2022 | Rui Tavares | 71,232 | 1.3 (#9) | 1 / 230 |
1 |
Opposition | |
| 2024 | 204,875 | 3.2 (#7) | 4 / 230 |
3 |
Opposition |
Presidential
| Election | Candidate | Votes | % | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Sampaio da Nóvoa | 1,062,138 | 22.9 (#2) | Lost  |
| 2021 | Ana Gomes | 540,823 | 13.0 (#2) | Lost |
European Parliament
| Election | List leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | EP Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Rui Tavares | 71,495 | 2.2 (#6) | 0 / 21 |
– | |
| 2019 | 60,446 | 1.8 (#8) | 0 / 21 |
 0 | ||
| 2024 | Francisco Paupério | 148,572 | 3.8 (#7) | 0 / 21 |
0 | |
Local elections
The following results include LIVRE led coalitions.
Regional Assemblies
| Region | Election | Main candidate | Votes | % | Seats | +/- | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Azores | 2016 | José Manuel Azevedo | 227 | 0.2 (#11) | 0 / 57 |
New | No seats |
| 2020 | 362 | 0.4 (#11) | 0 / 57 |
0 |
No seats | ||
| 2024 | 735 | 0.6 (#8) | 0 / 57 |
0 |
No seats | ||
| Madeira | 2023 | Tiago Camacho | 858 | 0.6 (#10) | 0 / 47 |
New | No seats |
| 2024 | Marta Sofia | 911 | 0.7 (#11) | 0 / 47 |
0 |
No seats |
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