Rui Tavares says the vote for Livre “is the most decisive of all”

Livre spokesman Rui Tavares said this Sunday that the vote for his party “is the most decisive of all”, demonstrating his conviction that the ultimately elected deputies will be decisive for the victory of the left in the legislative elections.

“At every election they always say that this election is decisive. Well, we can say this a thousand times because this election is completely decisive for our country. And within the framework of these elections, in which our democratic, social contract is being played out. and the future environmental contract we want, the vote for Livre is the most decisive of all,” defended the leader at the Talia Theater in Lisbon at a party rally to mark the start of the official campaign for early legislative elections in March.

Tavares defined Livre as “the left of the future, human rights, Europe, ecology” and the “rising left”.

“This March 10, when the votes are counted and when the left wins this election, you can be sure that it is through the vote for Livre, that it is through the deputy from Livre that this victory will be achieved. No no. is a more decisive vote than voting for Livre,” he assured.

In a speech warning about the rise of the far right, the historian sought to make the case that the party’s proposals, sometimes criticized or seen as utopian by other political forces, cited as an example the provision of unemployment benefits for victims of domestic violence, which is already law.

Tavares listed proposals put forward as part of this campaign, such as a “social inheritance”, which aims to give a young person aged 18 to 35 access to the amount that could arise from the taxation of a “large inheritance” or through the monetization of savings certificates.

“It is with a smile on our faces that we will change this game and build the future of this country,” he said.

Tavares believes that voting for Livre will also be crucial as we learn what will be discussed during the campaign: “whether it is the agenda of politicians or politics. Whether it is the agenda of the party, the agenda of the commentators, the agenda of the short media cycle, or whether it is the agenda of the citizens, what matters to their lives.”

The historian recalled that in the 2022 legislative elections, one of the topics discussed was life imprisonment, and that the party then preferred to talk about providing unemployment benefits to those who want to qualify or victims of domestic violence.

“Whenever they want to push the agenda to divisiveness and hatred, we will bring the four-day work agenda and social legacy to the table,” he guaranteed.

The leader called for the mobilization of local party structures over the next two weeks, asking them to spend “another thirty seconds” talking to an “angry or frustrated” citizen who “wants to give in to frustration” – a gesture he called crucial. for the future of democracy in the country.

Before the intervention of the only deputy, “number two” in Lisbon, and the municipal deputy, Isabel Mendes, López argued that the left is the only one who can conduct dialogue, in contrast to the right, which shows “confusion and lack of clarity.”

“The only solution for the future that can come from this election is a solution from the left. Livre is here so that the left as a whole grows, and together with Livre too. (…) In the campaign we must say that a useful vote is someone who is convinced and in whom we believe, and that a useful vote is a vote for the Livre,” he urged.

Braga’s spokeswoman and list director Teresa Mota guaranteed that “Livre does not give in to pessimism, Livre dares to hope, Livre is the left of the future” and Porto’s “number one” Jorge Pinto defended how important it is to “ensure that Portugal does not regressed by decades overnight,” referring to the far right.