Socialist Prime Minister Antonio Costa – who has been in power since 2015 – led the results of the early legislative elections that took place on Sunday in Portugal, in a vote that saw the far-right register a breakthrough and does not put the country away from political turmoil.
After his allies in the radical left abandoned him, prompting him to call for early elections; Costa may find himself, as in previous elections, unable to obtain an absolute majority.
In order to remain in office, Costa, 60, will have to go through difficult negotiations to gain the necessary support in parliament.
Estimates published upon exit from the polling stations showed that the socialist came in the lead, garnering 37 to 42.5% of the votes, and between 100 and 118 deputies out of 230, and he may be able to achieve a better result than the one he achieved in the previous elections in 2019 (36.3% and 108 deputies). ).
It appears that Parliament will remain generally dominated by the left, with the Left Bloc winning 3 to 10 seats and the Socialist-Green alliance 3 to 8 seats.
The opposition Social Democratic Party led by Rui Rio, former mayor of Porto, came second with 27 to 35 percent of the vote and 75 to 95 deputies.
As for the far-right “Shiga” party led by Andrei Ventura, it will win 6 to 14 deputies with 8.5% of the vote, and it may become the third political force in the country after its representation in the last elections was limited to one deputy.
