The vice-president of the Liberal Initiative is chosen for a candidacy of the Portuguese liberals for the leadership of ALDE. Cotrim even anticipated a candidacy, but ended up being vice-president of Renew Europe.
Bernardo Blanco is a candidate for vice-president of ALDE, the European party of which the Liberal Initiative is a member, according to the Observer. The Liberal Initiative sent a letter to the party, which is planning a congress in Estoril between 4 and 6 October, signed by the Liberal president, Rui Rocha, and the secretary general, Miguel Rangel, announcing the candidacy of the young deputy.
After João Cotrim Figueiredo announced his intention to run for office during the election campaign and ended up being elected vice-president of Renew Europe, after a quick failed candidacy for the post of president (he later said he was “green”, in (interview with Observador)—, Liberal Initiative is moving forward with the name of Bernardo Blanco, vice-president of the party and of the parliamentary group.
Described as an “inspiring leader for the new generations” and a “dynamic young man with exceptional communication skills”, the Liberals are betting on Blanco as someone who, they write, managed to attract a large number of supporters in Portugal and who “gained significant attention in the media and on television”. “His work propelled the Liberal Initiative to become the second most voted party among young people in the 2024 European elections,” reads the letter sent to ALDE, which the Observer had access to.
IL believes that the future of ALDE lies in “reconnecting” with young people and that Bernardo Blanco is the “right person to contribute to this mission”, with the aim of “moving young people away from extremism” and returning them to liberalism.
Recalling Blanco’s political and professional career, IL considers the deputy “a key figure in the success of the Liberal Initiative”, highlighting his contribution to the “innovative and disruptive strategy” of the party’s communication since its creation. In this political path, the Liberals also highlight Blanco’s work in the parliamentary commission of inquiry into the management of TAP, where he was considered a “star deputy”, with comparisons to the “Mortágua phenomenon”, which also caught the attention of other parliamentary commissions of inquiry.
The ALDE congress will take place in Estoril, between 4 and 6 October, and, contrary to what had been planned, due to statements made by Cotrim Figueiredo in the midst of the campaign for the European elections, the former president of IL, the Portuguese candidate for one of the six vice-presidency positions of ALDE, where Blanco is not guaranteed a place, will not be there.
The now MEP was elected vice-president of Renew Europe, the liberal group in the European Parliament, after a four-hour public candidacy for the presidency, in which he stepped back “after the last-minute withdrawal of support from several delegations”. He would later admit, in an interview with Observador, that he was a “green”. Cotrim ended up obtaining this vice-presidency of the parliamentary group of the liberals in Europe, which left a free place for a candidacy of IL for ALDE, which opted for Bernardo Blanco.
Cotrim de Figueiredo elected vice-president of the liberal group in the European Parliament
Source: Observadora
