“I am here to make a difference; I hope to be a pleasant surprise in the debates, especially since I understand that my lower profile compared to other candidates will mean many people will discover me during these debates,” said Jorge Pinto during a meeting with university students in Lisbon.
The presidential candidate believes the televised debates are a chance to persuade voters to support him.
“With many undecided voters, and many who have a chosen candidate but are willing to switch if another candidate persuades them, I am eager to be the person who reaches those undecided voters and convinces those considering voting for someone else that there is an alternative better positioned to be the President the country needs at this critical moment,” he stated.
“I will speak to everyone, including those disillusioned with politics who may have previously voted for right-wing or even far-right parties, but who can see in my candidacy someone who listens, engages with them, and brings their concerns to the forefront of Portuguese politics,” he noted.
Jorge Pinto hopes the debates, which began on Monday, will address “the issues that truly matter to the Portuguese” and “the responsibilities and the mandate of the President of the Republic.”
“There are specific competencies of the President of the Republic, and I want these to be on the table. For example, let’s discuss what the other candidates would do in a not entirely impossible scenario of an illegal military invasion that could involve Portugal,” he exemplified.
However, he anticipates that “many of the debates will boil down to the day’s froth, reduced to clichés of a scratched record, repeating the same answers regardless of the question posed.”
Regarding the health pact proposed by António José Seguro, the PS-backed candidate, Jorge Pinto highlighted that during the launch of his candidacy, he proposed “a republican pact covering these issues, as they are fundamental to the Republic and should not be addressed by just a single section of the stakeholders.”
“I am very open to all these pacts, but I want them to be realized and to be more than just rhetorical numbers in a political debate,” stated the candidate, who is also a deputy from Livre.
The presidential elections are scheduled for January 18, 2026.
This marks the 12th time (including the two rounds of the 1986 elections) since 1976 that Portuguese citizens are called to democratically choose their President of the Republic.
Among others, the announced candidates for the presidential election include António Filipe (supported by the PCP), António José Seguro (supported by the PS), André Ventura (supported by Chega), Catarina Martins (supported by BE), Henrique Gouveia e Melo, João Cotrim Figueiredo (supported by the Liberal Initiative), Jorge Pinto (supported by Livre), and Luís Marques Mendes (supported by the PSD).
According to the candidacy portal from the Ministry of Internal Administration, there are 31 more citizens collecting signatures for a presidential candidacy.
