| Author (Corporate) | Cardiff EDC (Compiler) |
|---|---|
| Publication Date | 2021 |
| Content Type | Overview |
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Summary: Information Guide concerning the presidential election held in Portugal on 24 January 2021. Further information: Under Portuguese law, a candidate must receive a majority of votes (over 50%) to be elected. If no candidate achieved a majority in the first round, a runoff election should be held between the two candidates who received the most votes in the first round. The incumbent President, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, announced in December 2020 his intention to run for re-election. There were six other candidates running for the Presidency, all of which supported by at least one political party. The electoral campaign took place as the third wave of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic unfolded across the country and amidst concerns over the socioeconomic impact of the restrictions imposed by the government. In this context, the rise of the far-right in Portugal was another of the main topics of the campaign - the leader of the radical right Chega! André Ventura stood for election and polls frequently placed him within reach of the second place in the election. Mr Rebelo de Sousa managed to win the election in the first round, with around 60% of the votes. Ana Gomes - a member of governing centre-left Socialist Party (PS) which do not enjoy her party's formal support - came second with around 13%. Mr Ventura was third with around 12%. The election results further fed into the debate of the debate concerning the radical right in Portugal, until recently an outlier in Europe concerning the (lack of) success of this kind of political parties. |
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| Subject Categories | Politics and International Relations |
| Subject Tags | National Politics, Presidential Elections |
| Countries / Regions | Portugal |
