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2012 Azores Regional Election
The Azores Regional Election (2012) ( pt, Eleições Regionais dos Açores, 2012) was an election held on 14 October 2012 for the legislative assembly and government of the Portuguese autonomous region of the Azores. in which the Socialist Party nominee, under the leadership of Vasco Cordeiro won an absolute majority with 49% of the vote, in comparison to their direct rivals, the Social Democratic Party (led by Berta Cabral), who achieved only 33% of the vote. Voter turnout was low (although higher than in 2008) with just under 47.9% of the electorate casting their ballot on election day. Electoral system The Azores regional parliament elects 57 members through a proportional system in which the 9 islands elect a number of MPs proportional to the number of registered voters. MPs are allocated by using the d'Hondt method. 5 members are also elected for a Compensation constituency. Background The election was called by the President of the Republic, Aníbal Cavaco Silva after con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Expresso (Portuguese Newspaper)
''Expresso'' () is a flagship weekly publication of the Impresa Group for Portugal. History ''Expresso'' was first published on 6 January 1973. The founder was Francisco Pinto Balsemão. The paper is based in Lisbon and is published on a weekly basis. The newspaper is part of the Portuguese company Impresa, which also controls various magazines, including '' Caras'' and '' Visão'', among the others. ''Expresso'' was published in broadsheet format until September 2006 when it switched to Berliner format. It is the first Portuguese paper to be published in Berliner format. A weekly newspaper, it incorporates various supplements, covering general news, business, sports, international news, entertainment, society, a magazine, recruitment and real estate classified supplements, as well as having a site on the Internet. It is particularly known for its editorial independence and its probing political reporting. The Prémio Pessoa is a notable Portuguese award instituted in 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RTP Açores
RTP Açores is a Portuguese free-to-air regional television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster Rádio e Televisão de Portugal (RTP) in the Autonomous Region of the Azores. It began broadcasting on 10 August 1975 from its studios in Ponta Delgada. History Buildup In 1975, during the transformative phase of Portugal's transition from Estado Novo regime to Third Portuguese Republic, Ramalho Eanes, then president of the administrative council at RTP solicited a dossier already published by João Paz on the future of regional broadcasting, then referred to as RTP-Açores.Catarina Duff Burnay (March 2012), p.132 After studying the process, its implications and conditions, Ramalho Eanes informed António Borges Coutinho that this project would be implemented swiftly. Along with Sousa Gomes and Sidónio Paes, the administrative council saw the public station in the Azores: ''"...as to contribute to the eradication of illiteracy...an instrument for educ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aníbal Cavaco Silva
Aníbal António Cavaco Silva, GCC, GColL, GColIH (; born 15 July 1939) is a Portuguese economist who served as the 19th president of Portugal, in office from 9 March 2006 to 9 March 2016. He had been previously prime minister of Portugal from 6 November 1985 to 28 October 1995. His 10-year tenure was the longest of any prime minister since António de Oliveira Salazar, and he was the first Portuguese prime minister to win an absolute parliamentary majority under the current constitutional system. He is best known for leading Portugal into the European Union. Early life and career Aníbal António Cavaco Silva was born in Boliqueime, Loulé, Algarve. He was initially an undistinguished student. As a 12-year-old, he flunked at the 3rd grade of the Commercial School, and his grandfather put him working on the farm as a punishment. After returning to school, Cavaco Silva went on to become an accomplished student. Cavaco Silva then went to Lisbon, where he took a vocational ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
President Of Portugal
The president of Portugal, officially the president of the Portuguese Republic ( pt, Presidente da República Portuguesa, ), is the head of state and highest office of Portugal. The powers, functions and duties of prior presidential offices, and their relation with the prime minister and cabinets have over time differed with the various Portuguese constitutions. Currently, in the Third Republic, a semi-presidential system, the President holds no direct executive power, but is more than a merely ceremonial figure as is typically the case with parliamentary systems: one of his most significant responsibilities is the promulgation of all laws enacted by the Assembly of the Republic (parliament) or the Government (an act without which such laws have no legal validity), with an alternative option to veto them (although this veto can be overcome in the case of laws approved by Parliament) or send them to the Constitutional Court for appreciation of whether they violate the Constitut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Terceira
Terceira () is a volcanic island in the Azores archipelago, in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. It is one of the larger islands of the archipelago, with a population of 53,311 inhabitants in an area of approximately . It is the location of the Azores' oldest city, Angra do Heroísmo, the historical capital of the archipelago and UNESCO World Heritage Site; the seat of the judicial system (Supreme Court); and the main Air Force base, Base Aérea nº 4 at Lajes, with a United States Air Force detachment. The island has two main sea ports, one at Angra do Heroísmo and the other at Praia da Vitória, and a commercial airport integrated with the flight operations at Base Aérea nº 4. The Portuguese bullfight is popular on the island, coming in two variations: the traditional equestrian bullfight (in the ring) and the popular " touradas à corda" that occur in the streets. History In 1439, the first official discovery document appeared, attributing the discovery of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
São Jorge Island
São Jorge () is an island in the central group of the Azores archipelago and part of the autonomous region of Portugal. Separated from its nearest neighbours ( Pico and Faial islands) by the Pico-São Jorge Channel, the central group is often referred colloquially as part of the ''Triângulo'' ("Triangle") group or just "The Triangle". São Jorge is a relatively long thin island with tall cliffs, whose 8,381 inhabitants are concentrated on various geological debris fields (''fajãs'') along the north and south coasts; from east to west, the island is long and, north to south, wide: its area is . History It is unclear when the first explorers discovered the island of São Jorge; as part of the politics of human occupation, the Azores were populated after 1430 (probably 1439) through the initiative of Prince Henry the Navigator. 23 April, known as the feast day of Saint George, has been cited by historians as the reason for the island's name, although this is likely conje ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Santa Maria Island (Azores)
Santa Maria () is an island in the eastern group of the Azores archipelago (south of the island of São Miguel) and the southernmost island in the Azores. The island is known for its white sand beaches, distinctive chimneys, and dry warm weather. History The first records of a group of islands in the Atlantic (aside from the legends of Atlantis) came from the voyages of Portuguese sailors during the reigns of King Denis (1279–1325) and his successor King Afonso IV (1325–1357). These were unsubstantiated accounts and unofficial, until 1427 when navigator Diogo de Silves found the island of Santa Maria (at that time referred to on nautical charts as ''Ilha dos Lobos'' or ''Ilha do Ovo'') during his journey to Madeira. Myth tells that on the day of the island's discovery, Gonçalo Velho Cabral and his crew were celebrating mass (on the feast day of the Virgin Mary), when one of the lookouts spotted the distant island, declaring ''"Santa Maria"'': this name would become l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pico Island
Pico Island (''Ilha do Pico,'' ) is an island in the Central Group of the Portuguese Azores. The landscape features an eponymous volcano, Ponta do Pico, which is the highest mountain in Portugal, the Azores, and the highest elevation of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. In the tradition of the Portuguese poet, Raul Brandão, Pico is referred to as the ''Ilha Preta'' ("Black Island"), for its black volcanic soils, which nourish its UNESCO-designated vineyards that once allowed the development of the island's economy. Pico is the second largest and, geologically speaking, the most recently formed island of the Azores, being around 300,000 years old. History The exact date of the island's discovery is not known. However, in the 1375 Catalan Atlas, Pico is depicted along several other islands of the Azores, where it is labelled as ''li colunbj''. In Cristoforo Soligo's map from 1475, Pico is described both as Dom Diniz (or São Diniz) island and as ''Insula Columbi''. Although the A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Graciosa
Graciosa Island () (literally "graceful" or "enchanting" in Portuguese) is referred to as the ''White Island'', the northernmost of the Central Group of islands in the Azores. The ovular Portuguese island has an area of , a length of and a width of . It is a volcanic island, dominated by a central caldera (the Caldeira) located in the southeast. History In addition to the other islands of the Central Group, Graciosa was explored by Portuguese navigators during the first quarter of the 15th century, although there exist no accounts of the first sighting of the island. May 2, 1450 has frequently been referred to as the date of the island's "discovery", although there exists no documentation to support this date. Paradoxically, it is clear that in 1440, by order of Prince Henry the Navigator, cattle and swine were settled on the island in order to facilitate colonization. Similarly, it is unclear the names of the first settlers to colonize the island, although around 1450 th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flores Island (Azores)
Flores Island ( pt, Ilha das Flores; ) is an island of the Western Group () of the Azores. It has an area of 143 km2, a population of 3428 inhabitants, and, together with Corvo Island of the western archipelago, lies within the North American Plate. The nearby Monchique Islet is the westernmost point of Portugal. It has been referred to as the ('Yellow/Auburn Island') by marketing and due to the association with poet Raul Brandão, but it is well known for its abundance of flowers, hence its Portuguese name of . History Some early accounts existed of the "(seven) islands of the Azores and two islands of Flores" (referring to the islands of Flores and Corvo), but no "official discovery" occurred until the mid-15th century. The island of Flores was discovered in the late summer of 1452 by the navigator Diogo de Teive and his son João de Teive, and first noted by the pilot Pêro Velasco to Christopher Columbus during his voyages. For his reward, Teive received the con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Faial Island
Faial Island (), also known in English as Fayal, is a Portuguese island of the Central Group (Portuguese: ''Grupo Central'') of the Azores. The Capelinhos Volcano, the westernmost point of the island, may be considered the westernmost point of Europe, if the Monchique Islet, near Flores Island, is considered part of North America, for it sits on the North American Plate. Its largest town is Horta. With its nearest neighbours, Pico (east across the channel) and São Jorge (northeast across the channel), it forms an area commonly known as the ''Triângulo'' (English: ''Triangle''). The island has also been referred to as the Ilha Azul (English: ''Blue Island''), derived from the writings of Portuguese poet Raul Brandão, due to the large quantity of hydrangeas that bloom during the summer months: History During a period of medieval legends and unsubstantiated stories of mystical lands, the island of Faial first appeared on the 1375 Catalan Atlas, as Ilha da Ventura or Insul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
D'Hondt Method
The D'Hondt method, also called the Jefferson method or the greatest divisors method, is a method for allocating seats in parliaments among federal states, or in party-list proportional representation systems. It belongs to the class of highest-averages methods. The method was first described in 1792 by future U.S. president Thomas Jefferson. It was re-invented independently in 1878 by Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt, which is the reason for its two different names. Motivation Proportional representation systems aim to allocate seats to parties approximately in proportion to the number of votes received. For example, if a party wins one-third of the votes then it should gain about one-third of the seats. In general, exact proportionality is not possible because these divisions produce fractional numbers of seats. As a result, several methods, of which the D'Hondt method is one, have been devised which ensure that the parties' seat allocations, which are of whole numb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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