António José Seguro has won Portugal's presidential election. He is from the Socialist Party. Seguro won in a second vote against André Ventura. Ventura is from a far-right party. Seguro got 66% of the votes. Ventura received 34%. Seguro will become the next president. He will start in early March. He follows Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.
Ventura's party, Chega, is new. It started in 2019. It is now the second-largest party in Portugal. Ventura was the first far-right candidate in a presidential run-off. This made many people in Europe worried. Seguro is 63 years old. He said he wanted a "modern and moderate" left. He promised to protect democracy. Many voters liked his message. Some conservatives did not like Ventura's ideas.
Many people voted in the second round. This was similar to the first vote. There were bad storms recently. Some voting was delayed in three towns. About 37,000 voters were affected. However, most people still voted. This shows they care about democracy.
The president in Portugal has important powers. The president can close parliament. The president can also reject new laws. Ventura did very well in the election. His party did better than in other elections. This shows that some people support populist ideas. Ventura's success shows the political situation is changing.
Ursula von der Leyen leads the European Commission. She said Portuguese people showed "democratic resilience." They voted even after the storms. Seguro's win is important for Portugal. It is also important for Europe. He will be president for five years.