Portugal’s far-right Chega party is looking to make further electoral gains, following the collapse of the country’s coalition government. The country was plunged into a political crisis late Tuesday, after the minority centre-right government lost a vote of confidence in parliament.
This will be Portugal’s third elections in as many years, as the country continues to be rocked by political scandals. The instability has fuelled disillusionment with traditional parties, which the far-right is keen to exploit. Chega were the big winners in the last round of elections, winning 18.1% of the vote and securing 50 seats in the 230-member Assembly of the Republic.
That made them the third largest party in the parliament behind the Socialist Party and the centre-right Social Democrats.
The far-right party has sought to boost its appeal by unveiling a number of populist policies.
They courted controversy when they proposed introducing chemical castration as a penalty for some sex offenders, in particular paedophiles.
The proposal was widely condemned by other political parties and branded unconstitutional by the Superior Council of the Judiciary.
Chega has also advocated for a harsher immigration policy, including establishing “quotas” for the entry of foreigners, and for stricter criminal penalties and the reintroduction of the death penalty and life sentences.
In 2021, they adopted the slogan: “God, country, family and work” — an appropriation and elaboration of Portuguese dictator António de Oliveira Salazar’s Estado Novo’s “God, country, family.”
The recent political turmoil in Portugal was sparked by a conflict of interest scandal involving the country’s prime minister Luís Montenegro.
An investigation into Montenegro’s family-run consultancy business, Spinumviva, found the company continued to receive payments from clients after he became prime minister in 2024.
One of the company’s clients is the casino group Solverde, that has a major gambling concession granted by the government.
Montenegro insists he has done nothing wrong, saying he placed control of the firm in the hands of his wife and children after becoming leader of the Social Democrats in 2022.
The prime minister said he would stand for re-election. Elections are expected to take place in May.