On October 4, 2015, Coelho and the PàF saw their vote plunge relative to their 2011 result by 12 percent. But at 38.6 percent they still came in far ahead of the Socialists at 32.3 percent. With relief, President Cavaco Silva, a conservative financial economist, turned to Coelho to make the first attempt to form a new government. But though PàF had won a plurality, it was a long way short of a viable majority.
