Confidence motions are pointed out as being more lethal for governments than motions of censure. The article mentions that Cavaco Silva was the only president of the Republic to be censured by parliament, while José Sócrates and, more recently, Rui Montenegro fell through confidence motions.
On the other hand, prime ministers such as Nobre da Costa and Passos Coelho were toppled not by confidence motions, but by the rejection of their respective Government programs by the assembly. This fact reinforces the idea that the weapon of confidence motions has been particularly effective in bringing down executives.
