Research Unit on Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policy

Funder

Organizational Unit

Publications

Debating the law of self-determination of gender identity in Portugal: Composition and dynamics of advocacy coalitions of political and civil society actors in the discussion of morality issues

Publication . Mota, Luis F.; Fernandes, Bruna

In the literature on morality issues, the most famous typology distinguishes countries from the “religious” and “secular” worlds, based on the presence or absence of partisan religious cleavages. Portugal belongs to the former world, yet in 2018, the Portuguese Parliament passed a law on the self-determination of gender identity. This article asks how such an outcome was possible, focusing on the role of political parties and civil society actors within advocacy coalitions. Our analysis reveals that, in addition to the role played by civil society actors, the “change coalition” won the dispute because it assembled a majority of votes in the parliament from left-wing progressive political parties. Moreover, actors from the “change coalition” developed a clear strategy of articulation before and during the debate. In contrast, the “blocking coalition,” composed of right-wing political parties and a few health-related actors, failed to define a coherent advocacy strategy.

2022Journal article

Restricted access

Politics and Policies in the Debate on Euthanasia: morality issues in Portugal

Publication . Almeida, Inês Santos; F. Mota, Luís

This book analyses the political and public debates about euthanasia in Portugal. Utilising petitions submitted to Parliament, legislative bills, parliamentary debates, opinion articles in newspapers, and documents published by the Catholic Church, it examines this sensitive issue through the theoretical lens of morality politics. It does so by studying the process of political dispute between advocacy coalitions formed by political parties and societal actors. This is the first book to comprehensively analyse a morality issue in Portugal, a predominantly Catholic country that has taken an innovative and liberal stance on many morality issues over the last two decades. It will appeal to students and scholars of sociology, political science, public policy and bioethics, as well as policymakers and other interest groups.

2023Book

Open access