Portugal\u2019s far-right Chega party \u2013 a potential kingmaker in a March 10 election \u2013 would demand to be part of a rightist coalition government in exchange for parliamentary support, its leader Andre Ventura told Reuters on Friday.Opinion polls show a hung parliament as the most likely outcome of the snap general election, with the centre-left Socialists the favourites to win the most votes but a combined bloc of right-wing parties expected to win more seats in parliament.Third-placed in polls after the centre-right Social Democratic Party (PSD), populist, anti-establishment Chega is seen as the most likely to be able break a deadlock, but it wants to influence policies in areas such as justice, internal affairs, and agriculture in return for enabling a PSD-led government.\u201cWe need to be part of the government to change people\u2019s lives. There will be no parliamentary agreement (to support the PSD) without a government agreement,\u201d he said.He added that there was a \u201cvery low\u201d chance of such a government taking over \u201cwithout members of Chega\u201d in it.Chega\u2019s demands will be difficult to swallow, adding to political uncertainly, as PSD leader Luis Montenegro has previously ruled out any agreement with Chega.But Ventura draws inspiration from Italy, where centrist parties backed a coalition led by the hard-right Brothers of Italy.Chega supports the death penalty, chemical castration for repeat rapists and wants zero tolerance for illegal immigration.It has said it wants Portugal to have more freedom from the European Union to pursue some bilateral economic ties and defends a new EU treaty on immigration.Chega has grown rapidly since its creation in 2019, when it won 1.3% of the vote in an election that year and the far-right\u2019s first seat since the end of Portugal\u2019s dictatorship in 1974.In a January 2022 election, Chega got 7.2%, and opinion polls point to it winning more than 15% in the upcoming ballot.Far-left parties accused Chega of fascism, xenophobia and racism but Ventura rejected those labels and said his party \u201ctouches on issues that interest people\u201d, such immigration and corruption.Socialist Prime Minister Antonio Costa resigned on Nov. 7 over an investigation into alleged illegalities in his government\u2019s handling of several large investment projects. Costa has denied wrongdoing and remains head of a caretaker government.(Reuters)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Portugal’s far-right Chega party, led by Andre Ventura, has stated that it would demand to be part of a rightist coalition government in exchange for parliamentary support. Opinion polls suggest that a hung parliament is likely in the upcoming election, with the Socialists expected to win the most votes but right-wing parties projected to win more seats. Chega, currently in third place in the polls, wants to influence policies in areas such as justice, internal affairs, and agriculture in return for supporting a PSD-led government. The party’s demands may be difficult to accept, as the PSD leader has previously ruled out any agreement with Chega. However, Ventura draws inspiration from Italy, where centrist parties backed a coalition led by the hard-right Brothers of Italy. Chega supports the death penalty, chemical castration for repeat rapists, and has a strong stance against illegal immigration. The party has grown rapidly since its creation in 2019 and is expected to win more than 15% of the vote in the upcoming election. Far-left parties accuse Chega of fascism, xenophobia, and racism, but Ventura rejects these labels and believes his party addresses issues that interest people, such as immigration and corruption. The election was called after Socialist Prime Minister Antonio Costa resigned over an investigation into alleged illegalities in his government’s handling of investment projects.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2407,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[609,295,3,379,575,418,415,419,582,610,18,444],"class_list":["post-2406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cyprus","tag-chega","tag-corruption","tag-cyprus","tag-eu","tag-far-right","tag-fascism","tag-government","tag-italy","tag-justice","tag-portugal","tag-world","tag-zero"],"acf":{"keyphrase":"","keywords":"","sourceimg":"","country-category":""},"yoast_head":"\n