Political Messianism in Portugal, the Case of André Ventura

Abstract

The article aims to discuss Populist Radical Right (“PRR”) through the case of the Portuguese party, Chega (“enough”), presenting its leader, André Ventura, as a political Messiah. Confronting the literature, this article emphasises that, until Ventura came into the scene and contrary to the idea of Portuguese exceptionalism, populism was historically evident in Portuguese politics long before the advent of Chega. Although much has been written about the PRR party, this article presents its leader, André Ventura, in the frame of political messianism. Supporting the argument with tweets from Ventura, this article shows that the leader of Chega navigates the waters of Portuguese colonial memory, with its narrative of a country without racism and of political messianism with roots in Sebastianism in case of Portugal, a poetic-prophetic aspiration for the return of the political saviour. To acquire a religious aura, Ventura uses elements of popular Portuguese religiosity, such as the Miracle of Fatima.

Social media and the rise of radical right populism in Portugal: the communicative strategies of André Ventura on X in the 2022 elections

“…In his study on political messianism, Dias demonstrated that the leader of Chega navigates the waters of Portuguese colonial memory with a narrative of a country devoid of racism and political messianism rooted in Sebastianism in the case of Portugal, representing a poetic-prophetic aspiration for the return of the political savior. To acquire a religious aura, Ventura employs elements of popular Portuguese religiosity, such as the Miracle of Fatima (Dias, 2022).…”