ISTANBUL
Portugal will go to the polls on Sunday to elect its next president, with opinion surveys pointing to a second-round vote and the rise of the far right shaping the race.
Voters will cast ballots in the country’s 11th presidential election since the end of the 1926-1974 dictatorship.
Eleven candidates are competing to succeed conservative Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who has held the post since 2016 after winning two consecutive terms.
The leading contenders include Luis Marques Mendes of the ruling center-right Social Democratic Party (PSD), Andre Ventura of the far-right Chega party, Antonio Jose Seguro of the opposition Socialist Party, and Joao Cotrim de Figueiredo of the Liberal Initiative party.
According to recent polls, Ventura is expected to lead the first round with around 21% of the vote, followed closely by Seguro at 20% and Figueiredo at 19%, RTP news reported.
Surveys indicate that no candidate is likely to secure more than 50% in the first round, making a runoff on Feb. 8 highly probable.
Portugal has only once held a second round in a presidential election, in 1986, when former Socialist Prime Minister Mario Soares overturned a first-round defeat to beat Freitas do Amaral.
The campaign has taken place against a backdrop of debate over social inequality, low wages, housing shortages, restrictions on migrant rights, and labor policies introduced by the conservative government of Prime Minister Luis Montenegro.
Portugal’s economy has grown by around 2% annually over the past two years, while unemployment stands slightly above 6%. The country saw its largest general strike in recent years on Dec. 11.
Chega is only seven years old but became the main opposition party for the first time after early parliamentary elections in May 2025 and has continued to gain support in polls.
During the campaign, Ventura has emphasized anti-immigration rhetoric.
“Becoming president would be the best way to lead the main opposition,” he said, adding that if elected, he “would not be the president of everyone.”
While Ventura is expected to top the first round, analysts say it will be difficult for him to secure a majority in the runoff.
About 11 million voters are registered for the election, including 1.6 million living abroad.