For the first time in 40 years, Portugal did not elect a president in the first round

On Sunday, January 18, presidential elections were held in Portugal, with the former chairman of the Socialist Party of Portugal, António Jose Seguro, and far-right politician Andre Ventura making it to the second round. Next month, the second round of elections will be held – for the first time in 40 years, writes Politico and The Guardian.

With 31.1% of the vote, Seguru made an unpredictable breakthrough, beating the leader of the far-right Chega ("Enough") party, Andre Ventura (23.5%). Pre-election polls consistently showed that Ventura had the most support among voters. With no candidate gaining an absolute majority, Seguru and Ventura will face off in a runoff on February 8.

"Ventura's ability to win nearly a quarter of the vote on Sunday underscores how rapid the growth of his Chega party has been in Portugal. In six years, the ultra-nationalist group has gone from having just one member of parliament to becoming the country's main opposition force, controlling more than a quarter of the seats in the legislature," Politico writes.

Despite Ventura's breakthrough on Sunday, few believe he will actually win the second round. Political observers expect the public to mobilize to prevent him from entering the presidential palace and to rally around Segura, the newspaper writes.

Ventura himself stated that he had no real interest in being "president of all Portuguese" and hinted that he was only running to gauge the level of support for his future candidacy for prime minister.

"In the five decades since Portugal toppled its fascist dictatorship, presidential elections have required a run-off only once – in 1986 – highlighting how fragmented the political landscape has become as the far right has risen and voters disillusioned with the mainstream parties," The Guardian writes.

Portugal is a semi-presidential republic. The president is the head of state and has the power to appoint the prime minister and dissolve the parliament. The president also has the right to:

→ veto laws;

→ ratify international treaties;

→ appoint individual members of key state and judicial bodies;

→ grant pardons;

→ As the supreme commander of the country's armed forces, the president has significant influence on the deployment of Portuguese troops.

"Portuguese presidents have been a stabilizing force in the country's politics since the creation of the republic, and the five previous presidents have won two consecutive five-year terms. The Portuguese electorate has traditionally elected presidents who have balanced against the dominant political force of the time. In this light, it is not surprising that Seguro, who is supported by the Socialists, is leading the polls despite the party's massive defeat in the 2025 parliamentary elections," writes andrew Bernard is a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's European Center.

This year's presidential election was the sixth major vote in Portugal since 2024 (after three national elections, European Parliament elections, and local elections).

• In May 2026, at the early parliamentary elections in Portugal the ruling party won Democratic Alliance. However, the political party did not win the majority needed to form a government on its own.