LISBON, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Classes have been cancelled in parts of Portugal this week as a result of teachers taking leave to campaign in local elections, the Diario de Noticias reported Monday.
The Portuguese go to the polls on Oct. 1 to elect a Municipal Chamber, a Municipal Assembly and a Parish Assembly. Candidates are entitled to up to nine days leave from work to campaign.
Being a member of a municipal chamber is a full-time, paid position, but being a member of a municipal or parish assembly is not. Therefore, teachers and school administration staff are free to serve on assemblies. As prominent members of the community, many see it as their duty to do so.
This is especially the case in rural communities and it is in small towns in the interior where the school staffing problem is most acute. It's reported that schools in the interior have, on average, between five and eight staff campaigning.
Critics point out that timing elections to coincide with the start of a new school year is problematic.
Local elections have been held in early October in Portugal since 2005.
