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Marrakech – António José Seguro of the center-left Socialist Party secured a decisive victory in Portugal’s presidential runoff election, defeating far-right candidate André Ventura with 66.8% of the vote.
The 63-year-old former Socialist Party leader triumphed over Ventura’s anti-establishment Chega party, which garnered 33.2% of votes according to official results with 99% of ballots counted. More than 11 million Portuguese voters participated in the election despite severe weather conditions caused by deadly storms.
Seguro becomes Portugal’s eighth president since the 1974 democratic transition and the first Socialist to hold the office in 20 years. He will succeed outgoing conservative President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who completed two consecutive terms and was constitutionally barred from seeking reelection.
The election proceeded under a state of emergency declared due to severe flooding and storms. Weather disruptions forced approximately 37,000 voters in 20 constituencies to postpone voting by one week, representing just 0.3% of the total electorate.
Ventura had demanded the entire election be postponed due to the storms, calling the government’s response “useless.” Electoral authorities rejected his request, stating that weather conditions alone were insufficient grounds for postponement.
Despite his defeat, Ventura achieved his strongest electoral performance to date. Chega’s 33.2% result exceeded the 31.2% won by the governing Democratic Alliance in last May’s parliamentary elections, indicating the far-right party’s growing influence in Portuguese politics.
The former football commentator founded Chega just seven years ago, making it Portugal’s first significant far-right movement since the end of António Salazar’s dictatorship. The party campaigned on anti-immigration platforms, displaying billboards reading “This isn’t Bangladesh” and “Immigrants shouldn’t be allowed to live on welfare.”
Seguro positioned himself as a moderate candidate promising cooperation with Prime Minister Luís Montenegro’s center-right minority government. He received backing from mainstream politicians across the political spectrum who sought to prevent a far-right victory.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Seguro, stating that “Portugal’s voice for our shared European values remains strong.” French President Emmanuel Macron also welcomed the result.
The Portuguese presidency is largely ceremonial but holds some powers, including the ability to dissolve parliament and call early elections. Seguro pledged to serve as a “demanding and vigilant president” while maintaining institutional cooperation with the government.
Seguro will be inaugurated in early March, taking office during a period of political stability concerns following Portugal’s third general election in three years.
