Portugal's National Elections Commission has referred Seixal Mayor Paulo Silva to the Public Prosecutor's Office over municipal bulletins that violated election neutrality rules.
The commission stated in an August 3 decision that two municipal bulletins published in July and August 2025 contained evidence of criminal activity under the Electoral Law of Local Authority Bodies. The process was sent to the Public Prosecutor's Office to evaluate potential criminal liability.
The decision followed two complaints against Silva, who represents the Democratic Unitary Coalition. Under electoral law, public entities and officeholders must observe special duties of neutrality and impartiality after an election date is set, prohibiting actions that favor or harm candidate listings prior to municipal elections held on October 12.
Election Commission Findings
According to the National Elections Commission, the two publications distributed during the campaign period emphasized the municipal executive's efforts, actions, execution capacity, and dynamism. The regulator concluded that readers would perceive the articles as self-praise rather than impartial factual reporting.
The commission noted that the messages created an imbalance of forces among competing candidacies and interfered with the voting process, violating legal provisions governing elections.
Mayor Defense and Bulletin Distribution
Paulo Silva responded to the commission that the Seixal Municipal Bulletin has been published monthly without interruption for more than 800 editions since April 1975. He stated that the publication does not alter its editorial content, information, or images during election periods.
Silva described the bulletin as an informative publication covering municipal activity promoted by local authorities, including the municipal assembly, municipal council, and parish councils. He said the articles provided objective coverage of actions taken, did not target rival candidates, and did not undermine equal opportunity.
The Seixal Municipal Bulletin is a free monthly publication owned by the municipal council and directed by the mayor. It has a print run of 73,500 copies distributed through CTT Editorial Mail and published on the local authority's website.
Media Regulator Ruling and Party Reaction
The election commission decision came two months after a ruling by the Media Regulatory Entity following complaints from the local Socialist Party. The media regulator determined that the bulletin failed to reflect the diversity of political views in local government, breaching rules on pluralism and diversity of opinion.
The Seixal Socialist Party stated in a press release that the election commission ruling confirmed its earlier warnings. The party explained that during election periods public entities must provide strictly factual and neutral information, while outside election periods institutional communications must ensure balanced treatment for all represented political forces.
Local Government Composition
Seixal is located in the district of Setubal. Mayor Paulo Silva leads the executive council without an absolute majority for the Democratic Unitary Coalition. The council includes three additional members from the PCP and PEV coalition, three Socialist Party councilors with assigned portfolios, three Chega councilors, and one member from the AD coalition of the Social Democratic Party and CDS People's Party.
The Seixal Municipal Assembly is led by President Brazio Romeiro of the Democratic Unitary Coalition. It consists of 39 members across six municipal groups: the Democratic Unitary Coalition, the Socialist Party, Chega, the PSD and CDS-PP coalition, Liberal Initiative, and the Left Block.
