Presidential candidate André Ventura considered this Monday that the legal action to remove his posters with references to the gypsy community represents a “political move” and said that he will only remove them by order of the court.
“This is truly a political movethere is no other name, this is a political move. Made at this time, in these terms, with this request for action, this is a political move, this is for a decision to be made so that you can follow the dismantling of posters live, the dismantling of political messages, the dismantling of ‘billboards'”, he stated.
Six people took action against André Ventura so that the leader of Chega is forced to remove, within 24 hours, the posters that refer to the gypsy community.
The candidate and leader of Chega called a press conference to react to this action, which he also classified as “political persecution” and argued that in democracy “there is separation of powers and there is also political freedom”.
André Ventura said that he chose, “in conscience, the messages he should convey in this candidacy for the Presidency of the Republic”, noting that “it is no different” from what he says publicly. And he once again insisted that he will not remove the posters, “unless there is a court decision”.
“I will not remove them because I understand that I am right, I will not remove them because I understand that the gypsies have to comply with the law, as everyone has to comply with the law, I will not remove them because I understand that the gypsy community must understand in Portugal that they have to follow rules, I will not remove them because I understand in conscience that the time of impunity is over, that the time when one could do what one wanted is over, and that this country needs to come into order” he highlighted.
The candidate for Belém considered that if the court decides to remove the posters “it will be sending a profoundly wrong signal to the country from a democratic point of view” and a “profoundly wrong signal to the upcoming electoral campaigns and freedom of expression in Portugal”, in addition to “a signal from Justice that gypsies have a privileged status that prevents any posters from referring to them”.
“It will reinforce the feeling of impunity”, he stated, anticipating that it will be “an error with very profound judicial consequences, but also political ones that will occur even in the middle of a campaign for the 2026 face-to-face elections”.
“We are truly facing a case of a devastating attack on freedom of political expression, but also a devastating case of politically concerted mobilization and organization to annul and silence a candidate”, he claimed, considering that it will be “a defeat of democracy”.
From the moment the action – which cost 30 thousand euros – is accepted by the court, it will have 20 days to schedule a trial so that a judge can decide whether André Ventura has to remove the posters or not.
The leader of Chega regretted this deadline, saying that the trial could take place “in the middle of the electoral campaign and in the middle of the debates” between the various candidates for Belém, and accused the authors of the action of trying to “judicialize political life and win in the courts or in the secretariat or in the National Elections Commission what cannot be won at the polls, what cannot be won in the political debate”.
The candidate for President of the Republic in the January elections next year considered his “political freedom” to be at stake, and refused that it could be conditioned by third parties, saying that voters would make their choice on January 18th.