“It is my expectation that the President of the Republic, after hearing all the political forces, will appoint me to form a government,” said Luís Montenegro, at the start of his statement to the press, at the hotel in Lisbon where the AD (PSD/CDS_PP/PPM coalition) gathered on election night.

In a room full of supporters, Montenegro was greeted with shouts of “victory, victory,” to which he replied, “Portugal, Portugal.”

The PSD president began by welcoming the increase in turnout in these elections and recalled that he “always said” that “winning elections meant having one more vote” and that only under those circumstances would he take on the role of prime minister.

“Well, it seems incontrovertible that AD won the elections and PS lost the elections,” he said, considering that the Portuguese wanted to “change government” and “change policies.” On the other hand, he said, the voters wanted “the big parties to be able to present themselves in a renewed way and with the capacity to innovate.”

“Fourthly, they also said that it is necessary for the parties, especially those with parliamentary representation, to give greater priority to dialogue and consultation between leaders and parties,” he stressed.

“I hope PS and Chega don’t form a negative alliance.”

The president of the PSD said today that he hopes the PS and Chega “don’t form a negative alliance to prevent the government that the Portuguese wanted”, again refusing to enter into agreements with André Ventura’s party, but without ruling out dialogue.

During journalists’ questions, Luís Montenegro was asked if, with a narrow victory for the Democratic Alliance (a coalition that brings together the PSD/CDS-PP and PPM), he would maintain the “no is no” he had said about agreements with Chega before and during the campaign. “I made two commitments in the election campaign, and naturally, I will keep my word. I would never do myself, my party, or Portuguese democracy such a disservice as to break commitments I made so clearly,” he said.

Regarding the margin of victory, he stressed that “it has the expression that the Portuguese wanted to give it”, adding that “two years ago there was an absolute PS majority, now there is a relative AD majority”.

Montenegro was asked whether he feared Chega could bring down the government immediately. “We are aware that, on many occasions, the implementation of the government’s program will have to go through dialogue in the Assembly of the Republic. It’s natural and our expectation that all parties can assume their responsibility, starting with the main opposition party,” he said.

On this point, the PSD leader said he understands that the PS doesn’t agree with the government’s program or adhere to the AD’s proposals. Still, he defended his responsibility to respect “the will of the Portuguese people.”

“And it is in this logic that my firmest expectation is that the PS and Chega will not form a negative alliance to prevent the government that the Portuguese wanted,” he emphasized.

PS Leader admits defeats that his party will lead the opposition in Portugal.

“Despite the tangential difference between us and the AD (Democratic Alliance), and without disrespecting the votes and voters in the constituencies of our communities, everything indicates that the result will not allow the PS to be the most voted party. I would, therefore like to congratulate the AD on their victory in these elections,” said Pedro Nuno Santos at a hotel in Lisbon where the Socialists were following the results of the legislative elections.

The PS leader said that he had already had the opportunity “to personally congratulate the AD leader”, and also took the opportunity to publicly congratulate the coalition as a whole for coming “first in this election”.

“The PS will be the opposition, we will lead the opposition. We will be the opposition, we will renew the party and we will try to win back the Portuguese who are unhappy with the PS. That’s our task from now on,” he stressed.

Before the PS leader began his speech, the PS activists shouted, “25 de Abril always, fascism never again”.

PS makes the AD government viable but will lead the opposition and not support it in parliament.

The secretary-general of the PS said today that the Socialists support a minority AD government and will not vote for a motion to reject it. Still, it stressed that they would lead the opposition and not support it in parliament.

This line from the Socialists was conveyed by Pedro Nuno Santos in response to questions from journalists, after he assumed the victory of the AD (Democratic Alliance) in the legislative elections.

As he had done in the pre-campaign, the Socialist leader reiterated that the PS would not vote on any motion to reject a minority AD government at the start of the new legislature because it is not in a position to present an alternative executive.

However, about the possibility of AD making the State Budget for 2025 viable, he considered this scenario “practically impossible”, saying that his party “is strong and united”.

“There’s no point in putting pressure on the PS. We’re going to lead the opposition. We’re not the ones who are going to support an AD government,” he stressed. In response to this question, he received applause when he declared: “The PS didn’t win the elections, it won’t leave the leadership of the opposition to Chega or André Ventura.”

Pedro Nuno promises to renew the PS and win back voters who are angry with the Socialists.

The secretary-general of the PS promised today to renew the party and to have as a central objective the recovery of citizens “angry” with the Socialists, considering, in an allusion to the Chega result, that there are not 18% of racist and xenophobic voters.

These positions were conveyed by Pedro Nuno Santos in his opening statement after assuming the victory of the AD (Democratic Alliance) in Sunday’s legislative elections.

“We will be the opposition, we will renew the party and we will try to win back citizens who are unhappy with the PS,” declared the Socialist leader before referring to the electoral rise registered by Chega in these elections.

For Pedro Nuno Santos, “Chega had a very expressive result that we can’t ignore. There aren’t 18.1% of racist and xenophobic Portuguese voters, but there are many angry Portuguese who feel they haven’t been represented and who haven’t been given an answer to their concrete problems”.

With PS president Carlos César and campaign director João Torres at his side, the Socialist secretary-general said that the central objective “will be to show them that the solutions to the concrete problems in their lives lie with” his party, not with AD or Chega.

“We will work over the next few months, in the future, to convince and bring back with us all those who are unhappy with the political system and with the PS. Our path begins now, today,” he stressed, receiving a prolonged round of applause.

He then quoted Mário Soares: “Only those who give up fighting are defeated. We’re going to have a lot of fighting ahead of us, with the conviction that we will once again rebuild a majority that will allow us to govern Portugal.”

Asked if he excludes an understanding on the left, given that, according to the data available so far, the AD and IL juntas have fewer deputies than the PS, BE, CDU, and Livre, Pedro Nuno Santos argued that this is a fact and that is why he has “difficulty in understanding the great victory that is going to Santana à Lapa,” about the PSD headquarters in São Caetano à Lapa.

“However, let’s face it: any solution like that would be rejected by the entire right,” he said, pointing out that although the AD (Democratic Alliance) and the IL have both ruled out agreements with Chega, the truth is that “when a solution is presented by the rest of the left, it would be rejected by the entire right that would unite.”

“So, I mean, it’s out of the question. Things are simple, they’re clear, let’s not complicate them, and let’s leave tactics out of it: we don’t have a majority and, if we don’t have a majority, we can’t present it as a solution,” he added.

From LUSA News Service reports.

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Cultures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance)  at California State University, Fresno–PBBI thanks the sponsorship of the Luso-American Development Foundation from Lisbon, Portugal (FLAD)