British News Agency

The storms of recent days did not deter voters; despite three municipal councils in southern and central Portugal being forced to postpone voting by one week due to flooding, turnout remained roughly at the same level as in the first round on 18 January.

The 63-year-old Seguro told journalists, “The response given today by the Portuguese people, their commitment to freedom, democracy and the future of our country, naturally moved me and made me proud of our nation.”

The postponement affected around 37,000 registered voters, or about 0.3% of the total, and is unlikely to have influenced the overall result. After nearly 70% of the votes were counted, Seguro secured 64%. Ventura trailed with 36%, but is still likely to achieve a result far stronger than the 22.8% won by the anti-immigration Chega party in last year’s general election. Votes in major cities such as Lisbon and Porto were counted toward the end.

Last year, Chega became the second-largest parliamentary force, overtaking the Socialists and coming after the centre-right governing alliance, which won 31.2% of the vote.

Despite losing on Sunday, the 43-year-old charismatic former television sports commentator Ventura reflects the growing influence of the far right in Portugal and across much of Europe.