The Regional Secretariat for Parliamentary Affairs and Communities, through the Regional Directorate for Communities, announces the results of the vote for the election of the Azorean Diaspora Councillors for the 2025-2029 term.
The new councillors were announced through the digital platform ‘Açorianos no Mundo’ in an election that took place over five days, from 20 to 24 May, and which recorded an overall turnout of 55.54%.
Of the 1,408 voters registered on the platform, 782 elected 17 Azorean Diaspora Councillors, out of the 19 provided for in Regional Legislative Decree No. 18/2019/A, of 5 August, representing their respective geographical areas.
In the United States of America, Zeto Carvalho (representative of SATA), with 100%, for the State of California, and Danny de Melo (businessman), with 100%, for the State of Massachusetts, were elected. For the common constituency of the remaining US states, the councillors David Rebelo Pimentel (vice-president for sales at Elan Chemical) and Katherine Soares (Marketing Coordinator of TAP Air Portugal – North America) were elected, with 85.29% and 14.71% of the votes, respectively.
In Brazil, the following were elected: Marcos Borba (business administrator), with 86.27%, for the State of Rio de Janeiro; Regis Marques Gomes (business manager), with 90%, for the State of Rio Grande do Sul; Marcos Pinheiro (teacher and tour guide), with 70.29%, for the State of Santa Catarina; António Arruda (administrator), with 87.00%, for the State of São Paulo; and Vânia da Silva (federal prosecutor), with 42.76% of the votes, for the remaining Brazilian states.
In Canada, the following were elected: Esmeralda Cabral (writer), with 100%, for the Province of British Columbia; Paulo Jorge Cabral (honorary consul), with 100%, for the Province of Manitoba; Matthew Correia (television presenter), with 67.05%, for the Province of Ontario; and Carlos Eduardo de Almeida (lawyer), with 100% of the votes, for the remaining Canadian provinces.
In Uruguay, Sofia Ruiz (lawyer) was elected, with 100% of the votes. Ambrósio (lawyer) was elected for the Bermuda constituency, with 100% of the votes.
For the electoral constituency of mainland Portugal and the Autonomous Region of Madeira, Rui Melo Silva (university professor) was elected, with 54.55% of the votes.
Finally, Tiago Domingues (manager) was elected as councillor for the electoral district corresponding to the Rest of the World, with 100% of the votes.
No councillors were elected for Quebec (Canada) and Rhode Island (USA) as there were no candidates in these electoral districts.
These results were determined by the electoral commission and approved by the Regional Secretary for Parliamentary Affairs and Communities, Paulo Estêvão.
The inauguration of the elected councillors is scheduled for Azores Day, June 9, in a virtual ceremony presided over by the President of the Regional Government, José Manuel Bolieiro.
The Council of the Azorean Diaspora is an advisory body created in 2019, made up of 35 members, including councillors elected by the Azorean communities, which aims to ensure the participation, collaboration and consultation of all those who wish to contribute to the development project of the Azores.
Source: Press Release @ azores.gov.pt
The Azores (population 250,000) is a region of Portugal composed of nine islands. The archipelago, discovered by Portuguese explorers in the 15th century, became an Autonomous Region of Portugal in 1976. The government of the Autonomous Region of the Azores includes the Legislative Assembly, composed of 57 elected deputies, elected by universal suffrage for a four-year term; the Regional Government and Presidency, with parliamentary legitimacy, composed of a President, a Vice-President and seven Regional Secretaries responsible for the Regional Government’s executive operations. The Autonomous Region of the Azores is represented in the Council of Ministers of the Central Government by a representative appointed by the President of Portugal. According to the latest US census, over 1.3 million individuals of Portuguese descent live in the United States, the majority with roots in the Azores. It is estimated that over 20,000 US citizens live in Portugal.
