Chega Rises: Ventura’s Nationalists Shake Portugal

by Kenneth Schmidt

Kenneth Schmidt reports that Chega, the national-conservative and anti-establishment party led by André Ventura, has surged to match the Socialist Party in seats, marking a dramatic shift in Portugal’s political landscape.

Chega, the national conservative Portuguese political party led by André Ventura, gained many seats in that country’s parliament in Sunday’s snap election. Chega is now, for all practical purposes, tied with the Socialist Party. Chega and the Socialists each won 58 seats, with the Socialists getting 0.82% more votes than Chega. Chega picked up eight more seats than in the 2024 contest. The center-right AD coalition, composed of three political parties, won the election with 32.10% of the vote. However, the leader of the AD coalition, Luís Montenegro, does not have a majority and will have to add a coalition partner if he wants to form a government. Due to a corruption scandal, where his family business was accused of alleged shady dealings, as well as a budget deadlock, Mr. Montenegro is already struggling.

The story of Chega’s rise in the political firmament certainly amazes. Founded in 2019 by Mr. Ventura, the party only got one seat in parliament that year. By 2022, the party ended up getting 7.2% of the vote and 11 seats, making it the third most powerful party in the country. 2024 was Chega’s breakout year when they took 50 seats, a massive gain of 38 seats.

Pre-election opinion polls taken before Sunday’s election indicated that the party would get something in the 17-18% range, which would have been no change over the 2024 result, but they got 22.56%. There is speculation in Lisbon that Chega’s percentage may go up when election officials are finished counting ballots from Portuguese citizens living abroad. Chega might even gain seats, putting them ahead of the Socialists. Pedro Nuno Santos, the leader of the Socialist Party, quit on election night after returns indicated he lost at least 20 seats. Even the Communist Party, one of the oldest in Europe, lost one of its four seats.

Sad to report that André Ventura was too sick to campaign during the final two days before the election. The hard charging Ventura collapsed twice with esophageal spasms due to stomach trouble and had to be briefly hospitalized. His doctors ordered him off the campaign trail. Ventura is a lawyer and worked as a law professor. He is better known in his country as a celebrated sports journalist.

Chega’s steady advance is yet another nail in the coffin for the ossified and corrupt Portuguese political class. Unemployment is at 6.50% and this affects mostly younger workers. The nearly pointless contest between the Socialists and the AD coalition has brought about a stagnating political deadlock. Like in the rest of Europe, thankfully, there is change in the air.