Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Mesmo assim, eu prometo ir votar, porque quero participar. - Even so, I promise to go vote because I want to take part.

mesmo assim – very common, neutral, works in speech and writing.
apesar disso – closer to "despite that"; slightly more formal; feels more like written style.
ainda assim – also "even so / still"; sounds a bit more formal or argumentative, common in writing and more careful speech.

In everyday European Portuguese, mesmo assim is often the default for "even so / still" in conversational contexts.

Is the comma after "Mesmo assim" necessary? Could we write "Mesmo assim eu prometo..." without it?

The comma is normal and recommended, because "Mesmo assim" is functioning as a sentence adverb at the beginning, setting up the attitude or contrast.

Correct and natural:
- Mesmo assim, eu prometo ir votar...
Without comma:
- Mesmo assim eu prometo ir votar... – You will see this in informal writing (messages, chats), and it’s not confusing, but in standard written Portuguese, the comma is preferred.

So: for good written style, keep the comma. In casual texting, many people drop it.

Why do we say "eu prometo ir votar" instead of just "eu prometo votar"? Is there a difference?

Both are grammatically correct, but there’s a small nuance:

prometo votar = I promise to vote.
Focuses directly on the act of voting.
prometo ir votar = I promise to go vote.
Literally "I promise to go (and) vote", slightly more colloquial, with a tiny bit more sense of making the effort to go somewhere to vote.

In practice, in this context (voting in elections), both are used and understood the same way. "Prometo ir votar" just sounds very natural and idiomatic in European Portuguese when talking about physically going to vote at a polling station.

Is "ir votar" here the same structure as the "going to" future (like "vou votar" = "I’m going to vote")?

No, here "ir" is in the infinitive, not conjugated, so it’s not the periphrastic future.

Compare:

In the sentence:
- prometo ir votar
  Both ir and votar are infinitives. This means "I promise to go vote".
Periphrastic future / near future:
- Eu vou votar. = I am going to vote.
  Here vou is present tense of "ir", and votar is in the infinitive:
- vou + infinitive = "going to" future

So:

prometo ir votar → two infinitives: to go vote
vou votar → conjugated vou
- infinitive = I’m going to vote / I will vote

Why is "eu" used in "eu prometo ir votar", but there’s no "eu" in "porque quero participar"? Could we say "porque eu quero participar"?

Yes, you can say "porque eu quero participar", and it’s correct.

In Portuguese (especially European Portuguese):

The subject pronoun (eu, tu, ele, nós...) is often omitted because the verb ending usually shows who the subject is.

So:

(Eu) prometo ir votar – eu is optional.
(Eu) quero participar – same; eu is optional.

Why include eu the first time and not the second?

Including eu in "Mesmo assim, eu prometo..." can give a slight emphasis:
- "Even so, I promise to go vote."
  It highlights the speaker a bit.
In the second part, "porque quero participar", the eu is clear from quero, so it can be comfortably dropped.

If you say "porque eu quero participar", it adds a bit more emphasis to "I":

"...because I want to participate."
Often used when contrasting with others who don’t want to participate.

Why is it "porque" and not "porquê" or "por que" in this sentence?

In European Portuguese, the most common distinction is:

porque – conjunction meaning "because", also often "why" in indirect questions.
- Uso porque quero participar. – I vote because I want to participate.
porquê – noun meaning "reason", or "why" at the end of a question.
- Não entendo o porquê. – I don’t understand the reason.
- Estás a chorar porquê? – Why are you crying?

In this sentence:

porque quero participar = because I want to participate
So we must use porque (the conjunction "because").

"Por que" (separate) is much more frequent in Brazilian spelling/usage; in Portugal it’s less common, and for most learners it’s enough (for EP) to think:

porque = because / why (inside the sentence)
porquê = the reason / why (as a noun or at the very end)

Does "participar" normally need a preposition, like "participar em"? Should this sentence say "porque quero participar nas eleições"?

The verb participar usually takes em when you say what you participate in:

participar em algo = to participate in something
- participar em eleições – to take part in elections
- participar em projetos – to participate in projects

In this sentence, "participar" is left general and unspecified:

porque quero participar = because I want to participate (be involved)
The context (voting, elections) makes it clear what the person wants to participate in, so em
- object is not needed.

If you wanted to be very explicit, you could say:

Mesmo assim, eu prometo ir votar, porque quero participar nas eleições.

That’s also correct, just more specific.

Is this sentence formal, informal, or neutral in tone? Could it be used in a serious context, like a news interview?

The sentence is neutral and natural; it works in most contexts:

Informal speech (friends, family): completely fine.
Semi-formal speech (interview, local meeting, classroom): also fine.
Formal writing (official documents): you might slightly adjust it, but it’s still acceptable.

For very formal written style, someone might choose something like:

Apesar disso, comprometo-me a votar, porque quero participar.

But as spoken Portuguese, even on the news or in a documentary interview,
"Mesmo assim, eu prometo ir votar, porque quero participar." sounds perfectly natural.

Why is there a comma before "porque"? Is it always correct to put a comma before "porque"?

Here, the comma is used because "porque quero participar" is a subordinate clause of cause (it gives the reason for promising to vote), and it comes after the main clause.

Main clause:
- Mesmo assim, eu prometo ir votar,
Subordinate causal clause:
- porque quero participar.

In European Portuguese, it is common and correct to place a comma before porque when:

It introduces a clear explanatory / causal clause after the main clause, especially in writing.

However, it’s not obligatory in every single case, and in shorter, simpler sentences you often see it without a comma:

Não vou porque estou cansado. – No comma, still okay.

In this longer sentence, the comma helps readability and matches standard written style well.

Could we move "Mesmo assim" to another position, like "Eu, mesmo assim, prometo ir votar" or "Eu prometo, mesmo assim, ir votar"?

Yes, but the most natural and typical placement is at the beginning:

Mesmo assim, eu prometo ir votar, porque quero participar. – most usual.

Other options:

Eu, mesmo assim, prometo ir votar, porque quero participar.
– Possible; adds a bit of emphasis on "eu", but is more marked in rhythm and style.
Eu prometo, mesmo assim, ir votar, porque quero participar.
– Grammatically fine, but sounds more stylistic / rhetorical, not everyday speech.

For standard, natural-sounding European Portuguese, putting "Mesmo assim" right at the beginning is best.

Could we drop "eu" and just say "Mesmo assim, prometo ir votar, porque quero participar"?

Yes, that’s totally correct and very natural:

Mesmo assim, prometo ir votar, porque quero participar.

In Portuguese, it’s very common to omit the subject pronoun when the verb ending tells you who the subject is. The omission here:

Makes the sentence a bit more fluid and typical of natural speech.
Doesn’t create ambiguity, because prometo clearly indicates 1st person singular (eu).

Including eu gives a tiny bit more emphasis on "I", but is not required.

How would the sentence change if we used "quero participar" in a different tense, like "queria participar" or "gostava de participar"?

Small shifts in tense/aspect change the nuance of how strong the desire is:

porque quero participar
– Present, direct, strong: because I want to participate (clear, active intention).
porque queria participar
– Imperfect (literally because I wanted to participate), often used in a more tentative / polite / hypothetical way:
- Could be: because I would like to participate or referring to a past intention, depending on context.
porque gostava de participar
– Imperfect of gostar; very common as a softer, more polite way to express desire:
- Like "because I would like to participate", less direct than "quero".

In the original sentence, "quero participar" matches the strong, determined tone of "eu prometo ir votar".