Portugal, elections in the middle of the pandemic

The Portuguese presidential elections will be held in the midst of the peak of the pandemic. Neither the outgoing president, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, suffering from the coronavirus himself, nor the government or the parties have claimed the postponement of the elections scheduled for next Sunday january 24th.

Portuguese politics, which for years has been offering a serious and solvent image, shares the idea that fulfilling the forecasts is very important and the constitutional principles must be respected above other contingencies. 

The Portuguese political structure is semi-presidential. Power is divided between the president, elected for five years and a maximum of two mandates, the unicameral Parliament and the prime minister, elected by the House, but with the necessary support of the president, who can remove him at any time.

The relations between the two leaders are fundamental and in recent years have been exemplary despite belonging to different and traditionally opposed parties: the Socialist Party (PS) and the Social Democrat (PSD), liberal despite its name. 

These will be elections that, for the first time, offer little expectation and not only because of the critical situation that the pandemic implies, but also because of the minimal surprise that the result may offer. While his popularity has dropped four points in recent months, the polls show the current president, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, as the winner in the first round with 65% of the vote. 

The popularity that Rebelo de Suosa (72 years old, son of a former minister of Salazar, a journalist and professor) has gained in these years is without precedent. And the most remarkable thing that stands out among those who follow Portuguese politics closely is the collaboration with the Prime Minister, which has been obtaining such good results. 

The list of candidates is extensive, but only three are granted significant results by the polls. The Socialist Party, in the Government presided over by António Costa, for the first time has not presented an official candidate. In view of the excellent understanding with the President, the leader and Prime Minister has resigned to do so. 

The PS will enter the competition in a testimonial way with a prestigious candidate, the current Portuguese Commissioner in the European Commission, Ana Gomes, 65 years old. She is a prestigious economist who is doing a good job in Brussels. She will compete with Rebelo de Sousa as a socialist, but without representing the party. The polls give her 17%.

The third candidate with the possibility of obtaining two-digit results is André Ventura, from the ultra-right-wing party Chega, who is part of the generation of ultras parties that have emerged in recent years in Europe. Chega has already obtained a deputy in the previous legislative elections and a good result in the regional elections of the Azores, which has given him access to the island's government. 

Ventura is 37 years old, lacks political experience, but his nationalist and ultraconservative exaltation is providing him with support. The polls give him 9% and his ambition is to surpass Ana Gomes' result and become the second party. Doubts about abstention at a time like the present exist, although polls anticipate that participation will not suffer.  

A high percentage of voters say that they will go to the polls wearing a mask and keeping all the necessary precautions to avoid the spread of the virus. As a result of so many years of dictatorship, Portugal is one of the European countries where democracy is best valued and respected.