Passos Coelho, leader of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and Paulo Portas leader of the Christian Democrats (CDS-PP) confirmed the decision at a presentation held in Lisbon on Saturday night.
The two pledged an open and positive campaign and opened the door to any independent candidates wishing to join their cause.
The PSD-CDS coalition was formed in 2011 after the PSD failed to gather sufficient votes to govern with a majority.
The coalition has not been all roses, with Paulo Portas resigning from office in 2013, only for him to return once had been ‘promoted’ to Deputy Prime Minister and some of his gripes were dealt with by the Prime Minister.
During the summer of 2013, political veteran Paulo Portas described his decision to resign as “irrevocable” and was made on the back of differences over the appointment of the new Finance Minister, Maria Luís Albuquerque, who took office only minutes before the leader of the CDS-PP junior coalition party made his decision official and final.
Paulo Portas explained in a letter to the Prime Minister that his differences with Maria Luís Albuquerque are well-documented and continuing in the government would have been untenable.
“Over the past two years I have protected the values of stability with all my strength. However, the manner in which decisions are repeatedly made by the Government, effectively renders my contribution dispensable”, Portas said.
But less than two years later, Portas and Passos Coelho seem to have patched up their differences and are seemingly ready to share the cabinet for another four years should the electorate wish them to do so.
The next general elections are expected to take place in the autumn, probably in October.