Antonio Costa stepped down on Tuesday after prosecutors detained
his chief of staff in an investigation into alleged illegalities
in his government's handling of lucrative lithium and hydrogen
projects.
Prosecutors said Costa was also the target of a related probe.
He has denied wrongdoing.
It is up to the conservative president to decide whether to
allow the Socialist Party (PS), which has a parliamentary
majority, to form a new or interim government, or to dissolve
parliament and call an election.
His office said he would address the nation after meeting his
consultative body, the Council of State. The meeting starts at 3
p.m. (1500 GMT).
A survey by Intercampus for newspapers Jornal de Negocios and
Correio da Manha showed 67.8% of voters would prefer an early
election, while 25.7% would rather see PS pick a new premier and
form a government.
Analysts also see an election as the most likely option,
although Rebelo de Sousa could choose to give more time to the
PS to get next year's budget, already approved by parliament on
first reading, over the line in parliament.
Joao Duque, dean of the Lisbon School of Economics and
Management, said the president was likely to take into
consideration Europe's volatile economic situation and allow
lawmakers to vote on the budget bill, scheduled for Nov. 29.
PS President Carlos Cesar said on Wednesday that if the
president decided to call an election, March would be the best
timing. Other parties pointed to January or February.
The budget includes lower income tax rates for the middle class,
higher wages and social benefits.
Separately, those detained in the investigation, including
Costa's close friend and consultant Diogo Lacerda Machado, were
due to appear before a Lisbon court on Thursday. They were
suspected of crimes of corruption and influence-peddling,
prosecutors said.
(Reporting by Catarina Demony, Patricia Rua, Sergio Goncalves,
editing by Andrei Khalip and Alex Richardson)
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