Portugal: conservatives win parliamentary election
Prime Minister Luís Montenegro's centre-right Aliança Democrática has won Sunday's snap parliamentary election in Portugal. The right-wing populist Chega party, which was in a neck-and-neck race for second place with the Socialist Party that governed Portugal with an absolute majority just over a year ago, made significant gains. The Portuguese press takes stock.
Chega capitalises on lack of stability
All the political parties are partly to blame for the right-wing populists making further gains, says Público:
“The parties were unable to offer citizens a minimum of political stability or prospects for the future. They have allowed despondency to spread, perceptions to become entrenched and pessimism to take hold. ... Instead of seeking solutions, the parties - all the parties - became embroiled in bickering and brought down the government over the tarnished reputation of the prime minister. The only way to prevent a Chega victory in the near future lies precisely in the recipe that was not applied last year: negotiate openly and guarantee a government with a minimum of stability for as long as possible.”
Right-wing populists like a hurricane
For Sol, the election has two clear winners:
“Luís Montenegro and André Ventura. The prime minister, whose government was toppled in the wake of a scandal involving a family business, sees his legitimacy confirmed and reinforced. ... What could have been a shock that threatened a precarious government turned a slim majority into a comfortable one. ... But the real winner in these elections is undoubtedly André Ventura. Chega has swept through politics like a hurricane and turned the country upside down. Until these elections, a neck-and-neck race with the PS [Socialist Party] would have been unimaginable.”
New government must succeed
The new government must get down to business quickly, stresses Correio da Manhã:
“This is no time for illusions, because the challenges that lie ahead are huge. In addition to familiar problems such as chaotic healthcare services, housing shortages, a demographic winter [low birth rate] and economic difficulties, the global context has changed in 2025 and brought new threats. The tariff war is already slowing down the global economy. ... In a poor country with so many social dramas and such a lack of hope, if the next government doesn't succeed the population is at risk of falling into a populist maelstrom.”