The Chega party has chosen Guarda as the venue for its first official campaign event for the legislative elections scheduled for May 18. The party organized a luncheon rally attended by more than 200 people. Notably, this rally was the sole agenda for Chega’s leader, André Ventura, apart from participating in a debate later in the evening, which includes all parliamentary parties and will be broadcast on RTP.
Upon arrival, André Ventura was greeted with raised Chega flags and the party’s anthem for the elections.
Ventura addressed the crowd even before lunch was served, reiterating a request he has made repeatedly in recent days, which has also been prominently displayed on billboards across the country.
“We are asking the country for just one opportunity, an opportunity to govern. For 50 years, the same parties have failed us, as we continually chose the same—PS and PSD,” he declared.
Ventura expressed the belief that the Portuguese people have become “progressively poorer and increasingly left behind.”
“If we replace the leader of the PSD with the leader of the PS, a government that similarly fell due to corruption, we are complicit in the current state of affairs in Portugal,” he asserted.
He further criticized the current leader of the PSD and Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, as embodying “the worst of the PSD.”
“And now, as more information comes to light, we see how much worse his representation of the party truly is. It’s not merely about poor governance, because not all are guilty of that, but it’s poor governance combined with participation in networks of interest, in small or great corruption, which has been destroying us for years,” Ventura stated.
The leader of Chega also emphasized that the party aims “to win” in the upcoming elections, viewing this goal as both “realistic and grounded.”
“We are not contesting these elections to come second or third; we are not participating just to increase the number of our MPs, whether by five, six, seven, or nine or ten MPs. That is not our goal, and you will not hear us claim victory just because the number of MPs increases, as it appears likely,” he said.
“We will not transform Portugal simply by increasing the number of MPs. We need more than additional MPs; we must win,” he insisted, asserting that the country “needs this transformation.”
Ventura argued that “for decades, the country has only functioned for economic and political elites,” indicating that Chega aims to “be the people’s voice” and make the country “work for ordinary Portuguese citizens.”
Without claiming to have “a crystal ball” to predict future occurrences, he expressed a “genuine desire to change the country once and for all.”
“Do not expect a rosy picture nor changes in a month or two. Expect hard work, commitment, and, in some cases, authority because the country needs authority,” he remarked, emphasizing that he can only be judged after assuming governance.
Speaking to a room full of supporters, Ventura highlighted the choice of starting the campaign in the interior region and pledged to abolish all tolls in the country, assuring that the party “never forgets its promises.”
The Chega party’s lead candidate for the Guarda constituency is Nuno Simões de Melo, currently a serving MP for this district.
In last year’s legislative elections, Chega ranked as the third most-voted party nationally and in the Guarda district, garnering over 15,000 votes.
