Following media reports that the court would be issuing the party with its certificate on Thursday afternoon, a court official confirmed to Lusa that the request had been accepted.


Marinho e Pinto, who last year headed the list for elections to the European Parliament of the MPT (Earth Party) and who was elected along with his number two, has since broken with that party. On 1 December he submitted an application to the court to register the PDR that included the signatures of 12,500 registered voters - well over the 7,500 minimum required.


In recent weeks, he had criticised the court for the time it was taking to legalise the new party, arguing that if the judges did not do so in time for the Madeira regional elections on 29 March, democracy there would be "mutilated".


In submitting the application, Marinho e Pinto said he wanted to fight against "careerism and the privileges of politicians" and open the electoral system for citizens to stand in the general elections. Among other proposed changes, he wants the creation of a single constituency to elect half of the 230 members of Portugal's national parliament, with non-party candidacies to be allowed, as well as a second chamber with the power to veto laws, so replacing the Constitutional Court.