Portuguese socialist politician António José Seguro became president-elect of Portugal after defeating right-wing populist André Ventura in Sunday’s runoff.
Portuguese voters headed to the polls to choose a new president for the next five years between Seguro of the Socialist Party and Ventura, representing the anti-mass-migration Chega party. Official results from Portuguese electoral authorities indicate that Seguro obtained a sweeping 66.82 percent of the votes against Ventura’s 33.18 percent. Voter turnout was measured at 50.11 percent.
Seguro will succeed outgoing President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on March 9, becoming Portugal’s first socialist president in 20 years.
As Breitbart News reported last week, the socialist President-elect received the support of establishment “conservatives” in Portugal, who chose to back Seguro over Ventura in Sunday’s runoff election amid Ventura’s efforts to lead his country’s conservative forces.
Seguro is a 63 year-old politician and a former secretary general of Portugal’s Socialist Party. International outlets describe Seguro as a former protégé of U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during Guterres’s tenure as Prime Minister of Portugal (1995-2002).
State broadcaster RTP reports that Seguro, during his victory speech, presented himself as “the president of all, all, all Portuguese people,” including those who did not vote for him, and said, with a “full heart,” that this victory is not his, but belongs to “every person who believed and has hope in a better country.”
A woman walks past a small truck displaying a local resident and presidential candidate António José Seguro campaign billboard parked near City Hall on February 07, 2026 in Caldas da Rainha, Portugal. (Horacio Villalobos#Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)
“I am free, I live without ties,” he reportedly said, referencing a slogan he repeated throughout his campaign. “My freedom is the guarantee of my independence,” he asserted, promising institutional cooperation with the government, stressing, “I will never be a counterweight, but I will be a president who demands solutions and results.”
Referring to Ventura, his rival in the runoff race, Seguro said that, “As a democrat, everyone who ran against me in this election process deserves my respect.”
“As future president of the Republic, I would add that as of tonight we are no longer opponents and now have a shared duty to work for a more developed and fairer Portugal,” he said. “The majority that elected me ends tonight.”
Ventura acknowledged his defeat and, speaking to his followers, asserted that “António José Seguro’s success at the helm of Portugal will be everyone’s success.” The populist candidate nevertheless affirmed that “we will soon govern this country,” noting that his party obtained its best results ever on Sunday.
“I think it’s fair to say, looking at tonight’s result, in which we surpassed the [Center-right coalition] AD’s result in the last legislative elections, that the Portuguese people have put us on the path to governing this country.”
“We didn’t win, but we are on the path to victory,” he asserted. “We will lead the right in Portugal.”
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