The Democratic Alliance (AD), Portugal’s centre-right party, won Sunday’s general elections by a slim margin and was preparing to govern without an absolute majority, after a warning from the far-right party No more instability unless you are included in the government.
With 99.1% of votes counted, the AD won 79 seats in the 230-seat legislature, followed by the Socialists with 76 seats, leading them to admit defeat.
Chega came third, quadrupling his parliamentary representation to 48 MPs after campaigning on an anti-immigration governance platform.
Chega voters said before the election that the country is in a bad situation and that they would like changes in housing, education, healthcare and justice in Western Europe’s poorest country.
AD leader Luis Montenegro told reporters Sunday that he hopes President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa will formally invite him to form a government before the March 15 deadline.
He said he hopes that the PS and Chega do not form a negative alliance to prevent the government wanted by the Portuguese people.
Chega leader André Ventura told reporters that the vote clearly shows that the country wants an AD government with Chega.
Eurointelligence consultants said the result marks a new political chapter in Portugal, after the alternation of government between two traditional parties over the past 50 years.
They said the CEO should seek support from Chega or the socialists for a minority government, or invite them to a coalition.
“The Alliance ruled out the first option during the campaign. The socialists ruled out the second option. Something must be done,” they said.
TILT TO THE RIGHT
The election result highlighted a political tilt towards the far right across Europe and a decline in socialist governance.
Since 2020, Chega has been part of the Identity and Democracy group of the European Parliament, which is expected to gain ground in the European elections in June.
Spanish far-right VOX congratulated Ventura on social media platform X.
“Patriots are leading the way in defending the freedom and sovereignty of nations against corrupt socialism and outdated bipartisanship,” he said.
Matteo Salvini, leader of the League, Italy’s co-ruling party, hailed Chega’s “extraordinary result, alone against all”, in a statement on Sunday evening.
Portugal’s PSI stock index fell 0.3% at the open, in line with the decline of its European peers, before stabilising.
“The impact of the election on the market turned out to be nil and we can assume that it was a ‘non-event’ for the markets,” market analysts at XTB wrote in a note.
“However, it is important to note that the fact that the CEO does not have a majority and needs to form coalitions with other parties to govern with the majority could be a risk factor if signs of instability arise again. In this scenario, we cannot exclude a negative reaction from the Portuguese stock market,” they added.
Under socialist leadership since late 2015, Portugal has grown at solid annual rates above 2%, except for 2020’s pandemic-induced slump. Lately, the country has been running budget surpluses, using the money to reduce debt public at less than 100. % of GDP and receiving praise from Brussels and investors.
Source: Terra
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