Portugal heads to polls

Portugal’s centre-left Socialists are expected to retain power and win more parliament seats in general elections on Sunday, after four years of economic growth, but still fall short of an outright majority.

If opinion polls hold true, Prime Minister Antonio Costa, the Socialists’ leader, will win the election with between 36.5% and 38.8% of the vote but will have little option but to ask other parties for support.

A series of scandals, from a nepotism row to the alleged involvement of a former minister in an army cover-up of the theft of weapons from a military base, have hit the Socialists’ ratings.

The main opposition Social Democrats, polling at under 30% now, are expected to lose seats.

Since the last vote, the People-Animals-Nature party (PAN) has emerged as a potential new kingmaker in parliament. PAN has said it is ready to support Costa if he commits to its environmentalist proposals, but it remains to be seen whether the party wins enough new seats.

Via Reuters