Same-Sex Marriage in Portugal?

By Christopher Mangum

Jose Socrates X390 (GETTY) | ADVOCATE.COM

Socialist Party leader José Sócrates, who vowed to legalize same-sex marriage if reelected as prime minister of Portugal, won the election held on Sunday and is set for another four years in office, reports Reuters.

While promising social reforms, Sócrates was reelected without a parliamentary majority, which will make passing liberal legislation an uphill challenge. The Socialist Party won 36.6% of the vote and gained 96 of the 230 seats in parliament. Meanwhile, the Social Democrats, the biggest opposition party to Sócrates’s reforms, obtained 29.1% of the vote and 78 seats.

If he plans to follow through on his campaign promise, Sócrates must also face the influential Roman Catholic Church. In 2007 his government clashed with the Vatican over the issue of abortion, but eventually Sócrates got the procedure legalized in the overwhelmingly Catholic state.

Despite the challenges, Sócrates said he will not "waver in implementing reforms, even when they are met with incomprehension, obstacles, and opponents," according to the Associated Press.

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Name: Nathan
Date posted: 9/29/2009 12:54:52 PM
Hometown: Lake Worth

Comment:
Olindo, I hate religion (including the Catholic religion) more than most people, and more than most gays. Many prominent religions are much more hostile to gays than Catholicism but there are a disproportionately large amount of news stories about anti-gay actions in the Catholic church, which leads to more hatred. Look at the stories on this website about Maine. The only religious opposition reported is that of the Catholics. As for the regimes you described, I think they may be bending to the will of the people to some respect. I don't think politicians generally believe in anything, but make decisions based on their quest for more power. You haven't changed my mind that religion is by far the number one enemy to gays.
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Name: Olindo Iglesias
Date posted: 9/29/2009 8:36:04 AM
Hometown: Lisboa, Portugal

Comment:
I still don't get it why people have so much hate against the Church, in this specific case the Roman Catholic Church, as if it was to be guilty of all the wrong doing in the World. I should remember you that the Comunist Parties, the Soviet Union, the Bolcheviks and the Cubans regard homossexuality as something amoral. As far as I can remember, they're neither Christian nor Catholics.
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Name: Ginelle
Date posted: 9/28/2009 7:41:45 PM
Hometown: British Columbia, Canada

Comment:
All Jose Socrates needs to do is look to his neighbour Spain, whose leader Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero also fought the Roman Catholic Church and won equal marriage rights for Gays and Lesbians on July 3rd, 2005. It is certainly going to be a very tough battle, one of which must be fought if the government is to ensure that all of it's citizens will be availed equal rights and protections under civil law. The Church must be put in it's place with regards to civil law, if the Church insists on meddling and involving themselves in political affairs and decisions of government, then they must give up their tax exempt priviledges and start paying the public coffers. Maybe then, some of these countries, especially where Catholicism holds so much power, may not be so poverty stricken with their starving masses! I wish Senor Socrates much support in his quest to give his all his people full civil rights under the law of Portugal!

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