To be or not to be a politician: profile and governmental career of Portuguese junior ministers

Abstract

This paper analyses the socio-political profile and the governmental career of the junior ministers who held office in Portugal between 1976 and 2011, putting the focus on the differentiation between individuals with and without prior political experience. Contrary to what is indicated in the literature, the results of this investigation reveal that most of these individuals are politically inexperienced and have a short and occasional governmental career. There are, however, important differences if we consider their political background, which confirms the relevance of the distinction between political and nonpolitical junior ministers.