ER Editor: Portugal went to the polls yesterday. CNN does a surprisingly even, informative take on a complex political landscape, which we discuss below. See —
Portugal’s center-right coalition claims slim election win as radical right surges
First, Antonio Costa, Portugal’s veteran socialist PM got taken down in a corruption scandal in November of last year, replaced by Nuno Santos. A few EU socialists were also taken down in the Qatargate scandal. This corruption probe of Costa takes away his eligibility for a top job in the EU.
Portugal in political crisis after PM António Costa resigns
António Costa’s downfall makes another Socialist ineligible for a top EU job
So, this time around, the Socialists got narrowly beaten by a right-wing coalition.
Portugal’s political landscape has moved between the Socialist Party and centre-right Social Democrat Party for years. Which sounds like the typical globalist stitch-up of the political landscape to us. (The Socialists had been in power since 2015, making Costas’ fall significant.) In yesterday’s election, neither mainstream party secured a working parliamentary majority (the Socialists got 28.7%, the Social Democrats 29.5%). The centre-right Social Democrats, however, are part of the new right wing coalition, called the Democratic Alliance Coalition involving a new radical right party.
The new radical right party, Chega (meaning ‘Enough), has won 18% of the vote, and could be a key player in the right-wing coalition going forward. Its leader is André Ventura, a former trainee priest and football pundit, according to CNN.
We can see that the Chega party is playing the role of ‘vilified right-wing extremist’ option, to be condemned at all costs. Similar to the AfD in Germany, Sweden’s Social Democrats, etc. The playbook is well-known to us all by now (via CNN):
The Socialist Party’s traditional rival is the center-right Social Democratic Party (PSD), which in December formed an alliance with two other conservative parties without parliamentary representation to fight in the March elections and combat the rise of Chega.
At the helm of the Democratic Alliance is the 51-year-old PSD leader, Montenegro, who campaigned on a platform for change and sought to present his alliance as a safer option than Chega.
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Portugal swings right in knife-edge snap election
The far right surges in a vote that concludes 8 years of Socialist Party rule.
AITOR HERNÁNDEZ-MORALES for POLITICO.EU
LISBON — Portugal’s center-right Democratic Alliance coalition claimed victory in an extraordinarily close snap election on Sunday in which the far right surged and no party secured a majority of seats in parliament.
“The Portuguese people have spoken,” said Democratic Alliance leader Luís Montenegro. “They want a different government, different policies, renewed parties and dialogue among their leaders … And that’s what we are prepared to offer.”
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