Following the news of password sharing among deputies in 2018 during the XIII legislature, the XIV legislature showed the same trend in the number of deputies’ absences, with more than 3,000 absences, despite the period being less than half of the previous legislature, and in a pandemic context. The 13th legislature had 412 plenary sessions, in which deputies were absent 6,246 times, corresponding to a percentage of 7.06%, and the last legislature, with only 197 plenary sessions, had 3,018 absences, or 7.14%.

Although these are two legislatures with the same government, the pandemic context dictated a difference, with consequences at various levels, both in society and in the economy. While it was expected that the pandemic would also affect the attendance of MPs, MPs were frequently called upon to discuss issues of national emergency. However, the attendance analysis shows no change.

Data sources: Portuguese Parliament Open Data Portal