The socialist was elected leader of the PS/Açores this Saturday, after early elections in the region that the party lost again to the PSD. In his first intervention he said that he wanted to “inaugurate a new way of doing politics” in the region, so that the Azoreans have a “more prosperous and brighter” future.
“That’s what we set out to do. To inaugurate a new way of doing politics that we hope can, first of all, demonstrate to those who vote, to our citizens, to Azorean men and women, that the PS is here to help them have a new future, more prosperous and brighter, where everyone truly has a place”, stated the new socialist leader in the Azores.
Francisco César was elected president of the PS/Açores today, in an election in which he was the only candidate, having obtained 93.3% of the votes, according to the party.
“In an electoral event in which 4,720 socialist activists were called to the polls, at 46 tables distributed across the nine islands of the Azores, 150 delegates were also elected to the XIX Ordinary Congress of the PS/Açores, which will take place between the 27th and 29th of September, on the island of São Miguel”, said PS/Açores in a statement.
In statements to journalists, the new Azorean socialist leader said that the party is in opposition (the Regional Government is formed by the PSD/CDS-PP/PPM coalition) but, in In his opinion, “being in opposition does not mean being against”.
“Being opposition means building, presenting alternatives, being in agreement on what is fundamental, on what interests everyone, on what is common, such as great works, such as the very issue of [companhia aérea] SATA, like other subjects, such as the development of one’s own autonomy, but also presenting alternative paths in the area of education, in the area of health, in the area of housing , in the area of the functioning of the social state”, he stated.
The socialist, who succeeds Vasco Cordeiro, president of the PS/Açores since 2013, added that his leadership will mark the beginning of “a new cycle” and “a new future” for the PS.
“The objective of this candidacy, with the results we had and with my election as president of the party, is to be able to inaugurate a new future here, as I said. We put on the agenda a set of areas that are, in our view, a priority for the Azores”, he said.
And he continued: “I’m talking about the issue of health, I’m talking about the issue of income, I’m talking about the issue of public services, namely access to healthcare. I’m talking about what sustains all of this, which is the economy.”
In education, the seventh Azorean socialist leader pointed out that the region is once again the worst in the country and one of the worst in Europe in terms of early school leaving.
“This cannot happen. We cannot have results of 21%, when the country’s average is [de] around 8% and the European Union’s objective is around 9%”, he highlighted.
Asked about next year’s local elections, the leader said that the party intends to improve the results and “try to have more votes than the main competing party”, hence the preparation will begin the day after the Congress, which will take place in September.
“We will be careful to choose those who are the best candidates, and who serve the best political projects, for each of the municipalities in the Azores”, promised Francisco César.
The PS currently holds the leadership of nine of the archipelago’s 19 municipal chambers.
Francisco César, 45 years old, graduated in Economics, is a deputy and vice-president of the PS bench in the Assembly of the Republic, and is also a member of the party’s national and regional secretariats.
The socialist, who was once a deputy and leader of the PS bench in the Regional Assembly of the Azores, is the son of Carlos César, current president of the PS and former president of the Azorean Regional Government.
