On March 12, 2005, the prime minister of Portugal, Jose Socrates said that he would seek to have the Constitution of Portugal amended to allow that a referendum on the proposed Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe be held on December 2005 alongside the municipal elections taking place that time. [1]

Initial plans and delay

The referendum was initially scheduled for April 2005 using the question "Do you agree with the Charter of Fundamental Rights, the rule of qualified majority voting and the new institutional framework of the EU, as defined by the European Constitution?", since Portugal's Constitution doesn't allow the text of a treaty to be put on a referendum directly. However on December 2004, the Supreme Court of Portugal rejected the proposed question, deeming it unclear. This resulted to the delay of the whole process, as a constitutional amendment may be required before allowing a referendum on the treaty itself.

Opinion polls and trends

It is currently expected that Portuguese voters will approve the Constitution. A Eurobarometer poll released in December 2004 had 61% support to the EU Constitution, compared to only 11% opposition.

External links

• Top Portuguese court rejects EU constitution referendum question
• Portugal PM plans December EU vote