Results of the presidential election in Portugal are in: Socialist candidate emerges from the ballot box

According to the first official results of the second round of the presidential election held in Portugal on Sunday, victory went to Socialist Party (PS) candidate Antonio Jose Seguro, who secured a landslide win against far-right candidate Andre Ventura. With 99 percent of the votes counted, Seguro's vote share reached 66.7 percent, while his rival Ventura remained at 33.33 percent. In a statement to the press following his election victory, Seguro said, "The message given by the Portuguese people today, and their commitment to freedom, democracy, and the future of our country, naturally both moves me and makes me proud of our nation."

Outgoing President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa announced that he had called Seguro by phone to convey his congratulations on his election victory. The statement from the Presidency indicated that De Sousa would receive Seguro at the Belem Palace on Monday afternoon.

The statement reported that President De Sousa conveyed his best wishes to Seguro, who will take office on March 9, and expressed his readiness to work to ensure a smooth institutional transition.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Seguro on his election victory in a message shared on her social media account, stating, "Congratulations on your election as President of Portugal. The citizens of Portugal have made their will known and have shown remarkable democratic resilience despite the destruction caused by the storms. Portugal's voice, rising in the name of the European values we share, continues to remain strong."

The storms that have hit Portugal in recent days did not prevent voters from going to the polls. The turnout rate remained at approximately the same level as the first round on January 18, despite some small municipalities having to postpone voting by a week due to flooding. According to the latest data, the voter turnout was approximately 50.11 percent.

In the first round of the election held in January, 11 candidates competed, with Seguro receiving 31.1 percent of the vote to become the candidate with the most votes, while Ventura remained at 23.5 percent, placing second. As no candidate reached the required vote threshold, the election went to a second round. Seguro, an experienced 63-year-old politician, adopts a moderate, stable, and conciliatory political line.

Seguro, who served as Minister of State between 2001 and 2002 and led the Socialist Party between 2011 and 2014, is known for specifically avoiding populist rhetoric and for his stance that the president should play a balancing and soothing role.

VENTURA BECAME THE FIRST FAR-RIGHT CANDIDATE TO REACH THE SECOND ROUND

Andre Ventura, the founder of the Chega (Enough) party—which was established in 2019 and became the main opposition in last May's general election—became the first far-right candidate to reach the second round of a presidential election in Portugal. The rapid rise of Ventura and his party, Chega, signaled the ascent of the far-right in Portugal, as it has in many other European countries. During the election campaign, Ventura had targeted immigration and foreign workers employed in the country.

Messages on the election posters of Ventura, who declared "Portugal is ours," such as "This is not Bangladesh" and "Immigrants should not be allowed to live off social welfare," had drawn significant attention.