In the quiet corridors of Portuguese democracy, there is a mechanism that hums like a hidden engine — steady, powerful, waiting for the moment it’s needed. It is the preventive constitutional review, a tool that allows the Constitution itself to speak before a law becomes reality.
Many people imagine that only the President of the Republic holds this key. After all, he is the guardian who signs, vetoes, or questions a law before giving it life. But the Constitution, wise and forward-looking, spreads this power more broadly.
Yes — a party can indeed take a law to the Constitutional Court, even if the President does not.
The secret lies in Article 278 of the Portuguese Constitution, which opens the door not just to the President, but also to:
- One-fifth of the deputies in Parliament,
- The Prime Minister,
- And in some cases, the Ombudsman.
With this, the Assembly gains a powerful democratic voice:
If 46 deputies unite, they can stop a law in its tracks and ask the Constitutional Court to judge its compatibility with the Constitution before it ever reaches the President’s pen.
And so, even if the President chooses to wait — or believes the law should move forward — Parliament itself can step forward, raise its hand, and say:
“Not yet. Let justice look at this first.”
Why does this matter?
Because the Constitution isn’t simply a legal text — it’s a living promise.
It protects trust, fairness, rights, and the balance of political power.
It ensures that a law born in debate must still bow to the higher principles of the Republic.
When a party uses Article 278.º, it is not just filing paperwork.
It is defending a vision of Portugal:
A nation where the rule of law stands above the rule of politics.
A nation where rushed changes meet careful scrutiny.
A nation where rights are not accidents — they are safeguarded deliberately.
The Nationality Law as a Modern Example
Just recently, as the new amendments to the nationality law stirred debate, PS announced its intention to request preventive review, invoking exactly this constitutional power.
Not to block for the sake of blocking — but to ensure that every line reflects constitutional harmony before becoming the law of the land.
It’s a reminder that democracy is not only exercised at election time.
It lives in these quiet checks and balances, where institutions question each other to preserve the country’s equilibrium.
Portugal’s constitutional design is elegant, It gives the President authority, yes — but it also empowers Parliament to act when conscience demands it. And so, the answer to the question is simple and strong:
Yes, a party — or more precisely, one-fifth of Parliament — can challenge a law in the Constitutional Court even if the President does not.
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