By Andrei Khalip and Sergio Goncalves
LISBON, Feb 8 (Reuters) – Moderate Socialist Antonio Jose Seguro secured a landslide victory and a five-year term as Portugal’s president in a runoff vote on Sunday, beating his far-right, anti-establishment rival Andre Ventura, exit polls and partial results showed.
A succession of storms in recent days failed to deter voters, with turnout at about the same level as in the first round on January 18, even though three municipal councils in southern and central Portugal had to postpone voting by a week due to floods. The postponement affected some 37,000 registered voters, or about 0.3% of the total, and is unlikely to influence the overall result.
With nearly 70% of votes counted, 63-year-old Seguro garnered 64%. Ventura trailed behind at 36%, still likely to secure a much stronger result than the 22.8% his anti-immigration Chega party achieved in last year’s general election. Ballots in large cities such as Lisbon and Porto are counted towards the end.
Two exit polls placed Seguro in the 67%-73% range and Ventura at 27%-33%.
Last year, Chega became the second-largest parliamentary force, overtaking the Socialists and landing behind the centre-right ruling alliance, which garnered 31.2%.
VENTURA’S POLITICAL CLOUT
Despite his loss on Sunday, 43-year-old Ventura, a charismatic former TV sports commentator, can now boast increased support, reflecting the growing influence of the far right in Portugal and much of Europe.
Seguro has cast himself as the candidate of a “modern and moderate” left who can actively mediate to avert political crises and defend democratic values. He received backing from prominent conservatives after the first round amid concerns over what many see as Ventura’s populist, authoritarian tendencies.
Portugal’s presidency is a largely ceremonial role but holds some key powers, including the ability to dissolve parliament under certain circumstances. Ventura has said he would be a more “interventionist” president, advocating increased powers for the head of state.
(Reporting by Michael Gore, Sergio Goncalves and Miguel Pereira; Writing by Andrei Khalip; Editing by David Holmes)
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