|Portugal Table of Contents Although Portugal's government
includes a parliament, an assembly, and a cabinet needing
parliamentary support, its president has considerable power. As
noted above, this dual system was a response to the Portugal's
experiences with parliamentary instability and dictatorship.
Yet, the extent of the president's power, even after the 1982
revision of the constitution, was not always clear. As a result,
at times the relationships among the main institutions of the
Portuguese system remained somewhat ambiguous. The president is
elected by majority vote in nationwide balloting. The term of
office is five-years, and no president may serve more than two
consecutive terms. Real power is vested in the office of the
president, who is not merely a symbol of national unity, but
rather the chief of state. In times of national crisis,
presidents can make or unmake governments, and even in normal
times (for example, when the government is weak and no party has
a majority) they can exercise consid