Voting day in Portugal.

Voters are called to the polls on Sunday March 10 to vote in the legislative elections during which the center-right opposition hopes to consolidate its slight lead in the polls.

But the populists could also experience progress at the polls.

Three months before the European elections, these elections could confirm that the far right is on the rise across the Old Continent, as Italian and Dutch voters have shown.

The Iberian country was one of the few in Europe to be led by the left when the socialist Antonio Costa, in power for eight years, resigned in early November, giving up running for another mandate after being cited in an investigation for influence peddling .

Polling stations open at 8 a.m. (local and GMT) and several projections of the results, based on exit polls, will be broadcast by local media at 8 p.m.

The results of the vote, in which some 10.8 million voters are expected to participate, will be announced in the evening, as the ballots are counted.

Center-right candidate rules out forming a government supported by the far right

With just over 30% of voting intentions, the center-right Democratic Alliance (AD) led by Luis Montenegro, 51, was leading the polls before the vote, with a slim lead over the Socialist Party (PS ), who grouped around Pedro Nuno Santos, 46 years old.

Third political force since the legislative elections of January 2022, which the PS won with an absolute majority, the anti-system Chega (Enough) party led by André Ventura, 41, could more than double its score from the last legislative elections and obtain nearly 17%. voices.

Despite the large number of undecided people, pre-election surveys predict that the entire right – made up of the AD, Chega and the Liberal Initiative – should be in the majority in the next Parliament.

But Luis Montenegro, a seasoned jurist and parliamentarian, has already ruled out forming a government with the support of the far right, at the risk of causing an impasse if he does not reach the majority of 230 seats alone or by allying with the liberals.

"Don't worry. First, stability will be given to us by the Portuguese people. Then, it is us, with our performance, who will guarantee it," he wanted to reassure on Friday, during his last meeting.

Inflation, corruption and immigration

His main opponent, the socialist Pedro Nuno Santos, for his part recalled throughout the campaign that the right, during its last spell in power, between 2011 and 2015, had applied severe budgetary austerity.

“When there is a crisis, we already know that it is salaries and pensions that they attack,” insisted this former minister from the left wing of the PS.

Third man in this electoral race, the populist André Ventura affirmed, for his part, that the two major parties of the center, which have shared power since the advent of democracy in Portugal, just 50 years ago, " are just two sides (of the same coin).

“One cannot succeed the other. For change, it is Chega that is needed,” proclaimed this law professor and former football commentator, known for his xenophobic attacks against the Gypsy minority.

Despite the consolidation of public finances, growth above the European average and unemployment at its lowest, the socialist government's record is tarnished by inflation, dysfunctions in health services and schools, as well as a strong housing crisis.

Added to this was the series of corruption scandals, which ultimately brought down Antonio Costa, and the doubling of the immigrant population in the space of five years, two promising themes for the far right.

With AFP

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