Former Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho stated on Saturday that he does not feel uncomfortable with the statements from Chega party leader André Ventura, who expressed a preference for the former Social Democratic Party leader to run for the 2026 presidential elections. Ventura made this announcement during his entry declaration to the Belém race on Tuesday.
“Why would I feel uncomfortable with someone who says they would vote for me, that they would support me if I ran? I don’t see why I should feel uncomfortable,” Passos Coelho remarked to the press.
He added: “I am not [a candidate], it is well-known that I will not be; it’s been known for a long time.”
Passos Coelho also refrained from commenting on whether Ventura had reached out to him and distanced himself from the electoral campaign.
“I have nothing to do with the contexts in which the presidential elections are taking place. I am outside of that,” he said.
It should be noted that the leader of Chega announced on Tuesday that he would be a candidate for Belém, as he believes the party needs to have a voice in the election.
“I would have preferred Pedro Passos Coelho to be a candidate for President of the Republic. […] These presidential elections were not my wish, but they are the best way to lead the opposition in Portugal,” Ventura admitted during a press conference at the party’s headquarters in Lisbon.
André Ventura mentioned that “it was not his wish” to launch a candidacy for Belém but explained that it would also be a way to lead the opposition. The leader of Chega criticized the candidates.
Ana Teresa Banha with Lusa | 17:22 – 16/09/2025
Earlier this year, the leader of Chega expressed his intention to run again for the Presidency of the Republic. However, he seemed to abandon this idea after the early legislative elections, which propelled the party to become the second-largest force in Parliament.
Nevertheless, during the opening speech of a National Council meeting called to discuss the presidential elections, the Portuguese far-right leader reiterated his availability to join the race.
André Ventura was a candidate for President of the Republic in 2021, the year Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa was re-elected for a second term in Belém, securing 11.90% of the votes and finishing third, behind Ana Gomes.
Besides André Ventura, other candidates who have entered the Belém race include Henrique Gouveia e Melo, former PSD leader Luís Marques Mendes, former Socialist Party leader (PS) António José Seguro, former Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) MP António Filipe, former Left Bloc (BE) leader Catarina Martins, and former Liberal Initiative (IL) leader João Cotrim de Figueiredo.
The President indicated that he is more “inclined towards January 18” for the presidential elections for “two reasons,” with the “most important” being the avoidance of a runoff on Carnival Sunday.
Carolina Pereira Soares | 20:07 – 16/09/2025
