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Ventura matches Marine Le Pen and posts one of the best results for populists in presidential elections

Sunday, 18 January 2026RSS

🏛️ Government #chega #european-politics #far-right #populism

Ventura matches Marine Le Pen and posts one of the best results for populists in presidential elections

The leader of Chega achieved a result identical to Marine Le Pen’s in the first round of the 2022 French presidential election. Only three populist leaders fared better in Europe, all in the east, and only one went on to the presidency.

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Ventura matches Marine Le Pen and posts one of the best results for populists in presidential elections11:37pm, 18 Jan 2026 • Expresso

Context & Explainers

Populism is a political style that frames politics as a struggle between 'the people' and a corrupt elite, often using simple messaging, charismatic leaders and direct appeals to public sentiment; it can appear on both the left and right. It matters for expats because populist rhetoric or governments can drive quick policy shifts on immigration, taxation and business regulation, so monitoring election campaigns and major reforms helps anticipate changes that could affect residency, work or services.

Chega ("Enough") is a Portuguese far-right populist party founded in 2019 by André Ventura. It positions itself as an anti-establishment movement against what it calls a "rotten and corrupt system" of PS-PSD dominance. The party surged from 1.3% in 2019 to 22.8% in May 2025, becoming parliament's second-largest force with 60 seats. Chega's core platform emphasizes strict immigration control—ending automatic CPLP residency, deporting non-independent immigrants, implementing job-market quotas, and requiring five-year social security contributions before benefit access. It advocates radical constitutional reform, including reducing parliament to 100 members, abolishing the prime minister position for a presidential system, and dismantling public healthcare. Law-and-order policies include life imprisonment and chemical castration proposals.

The party is defined by inflammatory anti-Romani rhetoric, with Ventura convicted multiple times for discrimination. Chega maintains international alignments with European far-right figures including Marine Le Pen, Santiago Abascal, and Matteo Salvini. Mainstream Portuguese parties, including Prime Minister Luís Montenegro's government, have imposed a cordon sanitaire, refusing coalition with Chega despite its parliamentary strength.