I voted for the first time today.

[a completely inoffensive name]

Yeah, in the Legislatives I voted for a party which I knew wasn't going to win, but does a very good job at being the opposition in the Parliament (Besides that I obviously identify with their overall ideals). The point of voting isn't to pick the winner, but to pick whoever you think serves your own and/or your country's interests best.

I know. That's what I did, I was just curious.

[HoreTore]

I was actually running for parliament myself the first time I voted.

I didn't want to vote for some whackjob loser though, so I voted for a different party than my own, the Socialist Left party, and I've stuck with them since. And I'm one of the few who have done that, I might add....

[Fragony]

Just voted as well. RAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR

Go pirate party

[Jolt]

I know. That's what I did, I was just curious.

Thing is, my voting was a little more complex than what I initially refered. While the party I voted for (Called "Left Bloc", a party Right of of Communist Party and Left of the Socialist Party - That is, neither extreme-left nor centre-left) is a good opposition in the Parliament, the fact is that I voted in the hopes that the Left Bloc didn't win but would become a large enough party force to be able to make a coalition with the Socialist Party (The incumbent party which managed to be re-elected and settled for a minority government). As the Left Bloc in itself is a quasi-communist party, which would be disastrous for them to rule in alone with an absolute majority. Since the Socialist Party was (In the first term) and is pretty much enacting right measures, my ideal plan would be for the Socialist Party which was going to innevitably lose its absolute majority, to have to form a government coalition with the Left Bloc, under Socialist Party's leadership. The catch would that under the coalition with the Socialist Party, the most radical left elements of the Left Bloc would be tamed and brought to make Center-Left policy (Besides the Left Bloc having a shot at power, instead of forever being opposition), while the Socialist Party, having to make concessions to bring the Left Bloc into the coalition, would abandon it's right-winged politics.

Thereby settling a nice true Center-Left coalition government in place. Unfortunately, the Left Bloc didn't win as many votes as it was being touted in the media (Not enough to form a absolute majority in the parliament with the Socialists), and was even behind the Conservative-Christian-Capitalist party (Called Popular Party). The Socialist Party attempted to make a coalition government with most parties (Soc. Party+Left Bloc+Commie Party ; Soc. Party+Popular Party ; Soc. Party+Soc.-Dem. Party), but the negotiations were fruitless. The Socialist Party and the Social-Democrat Party are the two "big fish" parties of Portugal. The Social-Democrat Party is Center-Right while the Socialist Party is Center-Left (Not so much anymore as they have occupied the space of the Soc-Dem Party with their policies)

As minority government they have been being helped by the Soc-Dem Party in major legislation.