Paulo Cafôfo, a former History teacher, recounts his political path, which began without party experience and culminated in a significant electoral shift in Madeira. In an interview with the "Rostos da Autonomia" podcast, Cafôfo details his childhood, his choice of a teaching career, and his unexpected victory in the 2013 municipal elections for Funchal's City Hall.
The invitation to run for the presidency of Funchal's City Hall, extended by Vítor Freitas, then leader of PS/Madeira, was initially declined by the teacher. He considered the candidacy an "adventure with little chance of success" against the PSD, which had governed the city for nearly four decades. However, persistence and his own conviction about the need for change led him to accept leading the "Mudança" coalition, winning the elections in September 2013.
Cafôfo also discusses the importance of autonomy for people's lives, 50 years after its implementation, and recalls difficult moments in the municipality, as well as his decision to leave the City Hall to run for Regional Government. His subsequent political career included leading PS/Madeira, running for Regional Government, and serving as a Member of Parliament in the Assembly of the Republic.
