The government of Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro has lost a vote of confidence, almost certainly pitching the country into its third general election in barely three years. MPs voted against him by 142 to 88 with no abstentions, toppling his right-of-centre minority government.

Portugal's president has announced that the country will hold an early general election on May 18. His announcement Thursday came two days after a minority government lost a confidence vote in parliament and stood down.

Portugal's prime minister proposed on Wednesday a confidence vote in his year-old minority government, risking his own dismissal as the main opposition parties vowed to defeat him.

Portugal has slid back into political uncertainty after its third government in as many years fell when the prime minister lost a confidence vote in Parliament.

Prime Minister Luís Montenegro lost a confidence vote triggered by an ethics scandal, with Portugal now facing its third general election in four years.

The government, led by the Social Democrats in an alliance with a smaller party, fell amid a controversy that has revolved around potential conflicts of interest in the business dealings of outgoing Prime Minister Luís Montenegro's family law firm.