Chega leader André Ventura holds a Portuguese flag after the poll results on the night of the second round of Portugal’s presidential elections in Lisbon, on February 8, 2026.
FILIPE AMORIM / AFP
Ventura has “established himself as the leader of the right” in Portugal.
André Ventura, Portugal’s right-wing nationalist politician whom the establishment media predictably dubs “far-right,” is not moping over Socialist António José Seguro’s presidential election win over the weekend. Instead, he and his supporters are keen to highlight the advancements of his Chega party, and insist that even if not now, “soon, we will govern this country!”
🚨URGENTE – Deputado André Ventura se pronuncia após perder eleição presidencial em Portugal
“A mensagem dos portugueses foi clara: lideramos a direita em Portugal, lideramos o espaço da direita em Portugal e, em breve, vamos governar este país!” pic.twitter.com/dPiTNQ2Wuk
After the results came in, Ventura said “the message from the Portuguese was clear: we lead the right in Portugal.” Indeed, Chega’s vote share surpassed both pre-election polls and the party’s previous results.
Ventura added that “we did not win these presidential elections, but we are making History” (emphasis added).
Chega official Pedro Frazão agreed with his boss that these results prove their party’s leading position on the Portuguese right, celebrating that “Ventura practically triples 2021 [and] establishes himself as the leader of the right.”
Call it what you will. This is growth, this is the people, this is CHEGA.
Rita Maria Matias, who represents Chega as a deputy in the Assembly, also on Sunday expressed “immense pride” in Ventura.
And commenting from Brazil, politician Gil Diniz said Seguro’s victory was “regrettable,” but that “Ventura’s strong performance shows that the right continues to grow and mobilise millions of people against the system.”
The conservative advance is already a reality with leaders like U.S. President Donald Trump, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, and Argentine President Javier Milei. All of them represent a global political shift based on national sovereignty, economic freedom, and the reclamation of traditional values.
Germany’s Junge Freiheit newspaper also described Ventura’s performance as a “notable success.”
Chega now has time to build its support base further still ahead of the next elections.
Michael Curzon is a news writer for europeanconservative.com based in England’s Midlands. He is also Editor of Bournbrook Magazine, which he founded in 2019, and previously wrote for London’s Express Online. His Twitter handle is @MichaelCurzon_.
