Portugal votes in presidential election battered by deadly storms

Portugal, which is reeling from a battering by deadly storms, began voting in the second round of a presidential election on Sunday, with the moderate candidate expected to trounce his far-right rival.

The election campaign has been disrupted by the storms, which have killed at least seven people, and at least 14 of the worst affected constituencies have postponed voting for nearly 32,000 people by one week.

Polling stations opened at 8:00 am (0800 GMT), with 11 million voters at home and abroad eligible to cast their ballots. First exit polls are expected around 8:00 pm.

Socialist candidate Antonio Jose Seguro is almost certain to beat outspoken far-right leader Andre Ventura but the far-right score will nevertheless be watched closely.

Ventura’s Chega (Enough) party was only created in 2019 but is now the largest opposition force in parliament.

The storms and fierce gales that swept in from the Atlantic have killed at least seven people and left an estimated four billion euros ($4.7 billion) in damage.

The latest victim — before the weather improved during the weekend — was a 46-year-old volunteer with the emergency services who died trying to cross a flooded zone on Saturday.

Ventura, who is trailing Seguro in the polls, alleged Portugal’s political leaders had shown themselves to be “useless” and called for the election to be postponed.

That demand was rejected and Seguro, during his last campaign rally on Friday, accused Ventura of “doing everything to keep the Portuguese from turning out to vote”.

– ‘Devastating’ –

Seguro, 63, is a veteran political operator and former Socialist party leader. One opinion poll on Wednesday put him on 67 percent.

He won the first round of the election, in which 11 candidates were standing, with 31.1 percent of the vote, ahead of the 43-year-old Ventura on 23.5 percent.

Storm Kristin killed five people when it swept across Portugal last week and Storm Leonardo claimed another victim on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Luis Montenegro said the storms had caused a “devastating crisis” but that the threats to voting could be overcome.

The last presidential election went ahead five years ago despite the coronavirus pandemic, outgoing president Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said he had told Ventura on Friday.

Montenegro, whose minority centre-right government has to rely on support from either the Socialists or the far right to get legislation through parliament, declined to endorse either if the second-round candidates, after his party’s contender was eliminated in the first round.

Seguro and Ventura have drastically rewritten their election scripts to focus on the towns and villages worst hit by the floods and storm damage.

Ventura has attacked the government’s response to the storms and Seguro has cast off his stance as a unifying candidate to also criticise the government.

He said he was “shocked” by the state’s efforts to get the country back on its feet.