The debate between André Ventura and António Filipe brought to the center of the discussion some of the great ghosts of Portuguese politics in recent decades – from the legacy of the “contraption” carried by the former communist deputy to the legacy of Passos Coelho with which Ventura identifies – crossing them with mutual accusations about which of the candidates will be a greater threat to Portuguese democracy and even an unexpected wink at the second presidential round, when Ventura said he trusts that António Filipe will vote for him against another candidate… implying reference to a second round scenario that brings together the leader of Chega and Marques Mendes.
Despite the obvious cleavages between two politicians at the opposite ends of each other’s ideological landscape, the confrontation never strayed from the tone, with moments of tension, irony and direct interaction between the candidates.
Inevitably, the debate began with the recent General Strike and the draft proposal for changes to the labor law that motivated it, on a topic in which both sought to occupy the space of defending workers. André Ventura accused the Government of having caused the strike by insisting on an “attack on those who work”, guaranteeing that “we should not have reached a General Strike” and that, if it were up to him, “this would not have happened”.
The leader of Chega tried to rule out the idea of a zigzag of positions on this matter and guaranteed that, if the proposal remains, his party “will vote against”. But, despite agreeing with António Filipe and the PCP in relation to some measures to change the law proposed by the Government of Luís Montenegro (“cases of discretionary dismissals, breastfeeding, or the possibility of resorting to outsourcing after a collective dismissal”, he listed), he made a difference for the communist candidate by admitting that he wants “a new labor legislation” and that this draft contains positive aspects: “Maternity leave will be increased to 180 days paid to 100% is a good thing”, he explained.
António Filipe responded with accusations of inconsistency. “Mr Ventura defended precariousness”, he stated, recalling that his opponent went so far as to classify the current labor legislation as “Soviet type”, despite, he recalled, “it being the Bagão Félix Labor Code and already amended more than 20 times since 2003, always to the disadvantage of the worker”.
The communist candidate pointed out the Chega leader’s “change in discourse” in relation to the general strike, which, he said, “only reveals the enormous success of the General Strike”. But António Filipe says he won’t be fooled by Ventura and warned that the real test of real change will be Chega’s vote in the Assembly of the Republic: “This will be the cotton test.”
Passos Coelho vs. Contraption
The ideological shock intensified when the debate entered the field of responsibilities for the country’s current situation. António Filipe placed Ventura “on the side of the interests of economic power”, classifying him as one of the “candidates of the neoliberal consensus”. And he used the Passos Coelho letter, to link Ventura to what he called the “worst government since the 25th of April”. “He only ran for these elections because Passos Coelho didn’t want to be a candidate, he saw himself in that candidate. I don’t see myself in that name and in that neoliberal consensus that got us where we are. I’m the one who’s against this system, not André Ventura”, he concluded.
The answer came in Ventura’s usual provocative tone. “I liked Álvaro Cunhal more, Fidel Castro, Maduro, China…”, he shot, leading António Filipe to interrupt him to demand: “Have respect for Álvaro Cunhal.”
The leader of Chega returned the criticism, pointing out responsibility to the PCP for the famous Geringonça, the PS Government with parliamentary support from Bloco de Esquerda and PCP that caused Passos Coelho to fall in 2015: “In these years, housing rose like never before, immigration got out of control and if today we have half of pensions below 420 euros, that is your responsibility too.”
Who threatens democracy?
In the final block of the debate, the future and current health of democracy were in evidence, with António Filipe accusing Ventura of having “anti-democratic statements”, highlighting one of the positions taken by his opponent in wanting to change the current Constitution. “A presidential candidate runs to comply with and enforce the Constitution”, defended the candidate supported by the PCP, criticizing Ventura’s defense of “another Constitution” and remembering that the President of the Republic “does not have constitutional review powers”. “Therefore, this proposal is unconstitutional”, he reinforced.
Ventura then responded with one of the most unexpected moments, an ironic wink at a potential second round scenario: “I think that in a second round António Filipe will vote for me.” The reply was immediate: “Don’t ruin my night”, replied the communist, who then heard the leader of Chega explore some of the PCP’s historical positions: “I think it’s funny to say that I’m a threat to democracy. António Filipe wants to leave the Euro and wants to leave NATO. A candidate who wants to leave NATO, who defends Russia… and I’m the one who’s a threat to democracy?”, he pointed out.
The discussion on democracy intersected with the themes of security and immigration, two of the most agitated flags by André Ventura and which provided a lively display of differences between the candidates, as Ventura stated that he preferred “a dead criminal than a dead policeman”.
António Filipe considered the statements “very serious”, remembering that the President “does not give powers to the police” and that “he cannot want someone to die”. “I want a country in which everyone lives in safety, not a country in which everyone kills each other. The idea of a President of the Republic giving power to the police must be a phenomenon of any Banana Republic that supports a dictatorship like that of his friend Buekele in El Salvador”, attacked the communist, with Ventura retorting that “El Salvador is the safest country in the world, it has become safer than Switzerland” [nota: segundo o Global Peace Index de 2025, El Salvador está na 104ª posição dos países mais seguros, enquanto a Suíça está no 5º posto, num ranking em que Portugal é 7.º]. And he ended with the inevitable mention of the PCP’s position on the war in Ukraine: “I see António Filipe saying that he wants a country where we all agree and no one kills themselves, but he supports the Russian invasion of Ukraine.”
The presidential debates continue on Monday, with André Ventura once again at stake, against Henrique Gouveia e Melo, in a debate between two of the names that the polls highlight in the dispute for the second round.
Upcoming debates:
Monday, December 15th
Henrique Gouveia e Melo vs. André Ventura (RTP)
Friday, December 19th
João Cotrim de Figueiredo vs. André Ventura (SIC)
Saturday, December 20th
António José Seguro vs. António Filipe (TVI)
Sunday, December 21st
Catarina Martins vs. Jorge Pinto (RTP)
Monday, December 22nd
Henrique Gouveia e Melo vs. Luís Marques Mendes (TVI)