During a walkabout in Braga, the leader of the Chega party was queried by journalists on the party’s target for the upcoming Sunday election. “To win, Chega always aims to win. Our objective is to win. Chega has become the leader of the opposition, and the leader must strive to win in Braga, Porto, Algarve, and Ponta Delgada,” he stated.
Addressing the fact that Chega does not lead any municipalities despite electing 19 councilors in the last local elections, the leader noted that in 2021 the party had only one deputy, but now has 60 and is “the second largest party in the country.” “The second largest party in the country always wants to win. There is no other focus but to win,” he reiterated, without specifying how many municipalities the party aims to win.
Expressing belief that “no campaign has the energy or popular support that this one has,” André Ventura suggested that this is a “sign of Chega’s strength.” “I think it was a great campaign, and there haven’t been many campaigns with this energy in the country’s history,” he argued. He noted that the party’s national tour included “very small places” where the party has better chances and “very large places where winning is more challenging.”
“We want to win everywhere, and we will fight for it on Sunday,” he declared. “Now, humbly, let us wait for Sunday and see the results,” he stated. During these declarations, the Chega leader mentioned that the social network TikTok, where he maintains a strong presence, threatened to “ban” his account due to two videos he posted, describing it as “an unacceptable act of censorship and political cancellation.”
On the final day of campaigning for Sunday’s local elections, Chega’s national tour resumed with a walkabout in Braga, featuring drums and over a hundred people. Throughout the route, between the Arco da Porta Nova and Praça da República, supporters shouted for the leader and the mayoral candidate for Braga, Filipe Aguiar, chanting “victory, victory.”
Near the end of the walkabout, André Ventura was approached by a supporter wishing to express support. “You have to change this. We, Chega, must change this. It is you we believe in. One day we’ll win; we just cannot give up,” stated the supporter, to which the leader replied: “We will win; we will not give up.”
Later, Ventura was again approached by a member of the Romani community, who expressed his work ethic and complained about discrimination and generalizations. “I love you as a person, but I am against what you say because we are all human beings,” he stated, insisting “the Roma are not demons.”
The Chega leader insisted that “rules need to be followed” and “responsibilities fulfilled.” “You cannot justify robberies, violence, or underage marriages with racism. You might say there are integration difficulties, but your actions haven’t aided integration, instead contributing to further separation and seeking privileges. I might be wrong; that’s how I see it,” responded Ventura.
At the end of the conversation, André Ventura said that both opinions can “coexist democratically,” and the two shook hands.
