The Marinha Grande Blow
The most emblematic presidential election of 1986 was the only one in which a President of the Republic was elected in the second round. The race for Belém Palace began with four candidates but ended up pitting Mário Soares against Freitas do Amaral.
Soares was the elected president with the highest percentage of the vote
Veteran socialist Mário Soares was the President of the Republic elected with the highest vote share: he received 70.35% in the 1996 election.
Mário Soares in 1986: the wildest presidential election ever inspired a fine TV series
A snapshot of a political era, the series “A Duas Voltas: Mário Soares e as Presidenciais de 1986” revisits Portugal’s most hotly contested presidential elections using archive footage (televised debates, interviews, reports) and previously unseen interviews.
Pedro Nuno's support and Mário Soares's socks
Seguro says he is 'pleased' with Pedro Nuno Santos's support. 'Another one' joins the candidacy which, he says, brings together voters from the left to the right. A cold morning in Barcelos, with mentions of Mário Soares's socks.
Cavaco defeated Soares and 'stumbled' in the BPN crisis
Cavaco Silva won the 2006 presidential election with the Socialist Party divided, in a contest that reunited him with Mário Soares, the President with whom the former PSD prime minister shared power for ten years.
Sampaio and his message of dialogue and stability
The socialist Jorge Sampaio succeeded fellow socialist Mário Soares at Belém Palace in 1996, the year he defeated the right‑wing candidate Cavaco Silva.
Soares, from division to President of all the Portuguese
Mário Soares, the Socialist Party's historic leader, was the first civilian President in the democratic era, elected in 1986 in a poll that split the country in two and went to a second round — the first and only time this has happened.