Eduardo Costa / Lusa
André Ventura, president of Chega
Between political differences and accusations of a cult of André Ventura, internal conflicts are the basis for the departure of half of the 19 councilors elected by Chega in the last municipal elections.
Since the 2021 local elections, Chega has lost half of its 19 elected councilors, with separations that began shortly after the vote. The reasons given vary between political differencesaccusations of authoritarianism and disagreements with André Ventura’s leadership.
The first departure occurred in November 2021, with Cidália Figueira, councilor in the Chamber of Moura, who left the party citing “political differences”. Shortly afterwards, in December, Márcio Oliveira, from Sesimbra, also left Chega because he disagreed with internal practices, having episodes of xenophobia reported.
Throughout 2022, other prominent departures followed. In March, Ivo Pedaço, from Moita, and Henrique Freire, from Seixal, parted ways. Freire lost the leadership’s trust after supporting the CDU budget and criticized the party for promote a “cult of the leader” and for being “autocratic”.
In April, Luís Forinho, councilor in Entroncamento, left Chega, later facing a complaint filed by the mayor, due to controversial behavior, including the use of a t-shirt associated with neo-Nazi groups at a council meeting, reveals the .
In 2023, the party faced more defections. Nuno Afonso, one of the founders of Chega and André Ventura’s internal opponentleft in January and became a candidate for the Land Party (MPT). Later, in June, Ana Moisão, from Serpa, and Milena Castro, from Benavente, also left the party. The last departure was that of Fernando Silva, councilor in Vila Verde, expelled by Chega after announcing his separation in November 2023.
In the Santarém district, councilors Pedro Frazão, in the district capital, and Maria Lino, in Salvaterra de Magos, resigned from their positions last month, citing disagreements with local members of the party.
In the 2021 municipal elections, Chega emerged as the fourth most voted political force, with 208 thousand votes, behind PS, PSD and CDU. Despite having guaranteed 19 councilors and 173 municipal deputies, the defections and internal criticism cast doubt on the stability and future of the party at the municipal level.
