Chega (; officially stylised as CHEGA!; ) is a
national conservative
National conservatism is a nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding national and cultural identity. National conservatives usually combine nationalism with conservative stances promoting traditional cultural values, fa ...
,
right-wing populist
Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right-wing nationalism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics and populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti-elitist sentiments, opposition to the Establi ...
political party in Portugal formed in 2019 by
André Ventura
André Claro Amaral Ventura (; born 15 January 1983) is a right-wing Portuguese politician and former sports pundit. He briefly worked as a senior civil servant at the Portuguese tax office. He founded the Chega party in April 2019, and was ...
. It is characterized as being between the
right-wing
Right-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position on the basis of natural law, economics, authorit ...
and
far-right
Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...
of the political spectrum.
Its inclusion in the register of Portuguese political parties was accepted by the Constitutional Court on 9 April 2019. On the 12th of April 2019, it announced that the head of its list to the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
is Ventura. Chega was part of the
Basta! coalition for the
2019 European Parliament election in Portugal
The 2019 European Parliament election in Portugal elected the Portuguese delegation to the European Parliament from 2019 to 2024. This was the eighth European Parliament election held in Portugal. The election was held on Sunday, 26 May 2019.
The ...
. In the
2019 Portuguese legislative election it won one seat in the
Portuguese Parliament
The Assembly of the Republic (Portuguese: ''Assembleia da República'', ), commonly referred to as simply Parliament (Portuguese: ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral parliament of Portugal. According to the Constitution of Portugal, the parliament ...
. In the
2022 general election
The following elections are scheduled to occur in 2022. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world.
* 2022 United Nations Security Council election
* 2022 national electoral calendar
* 2022 local ...
, it increased its seat count to 12 with a 7.18% swing in its favour.
Ideology
Chega considers itself a party with
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
,
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
and
personalist
Personalism is an intellectual stance that emphasizes the importance of human persons. Personalism exists in many different versions, and this makes it somewhat difficult to define as a philosophical and theological movement. Friedrich Schleierm ...
roots.
It defends the promotion of an effective judicial system and the decrease of the State's intervention in the economy. The party also presents itself as
national conservative
National conservatism is a nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding national and cultural identity. National conservatives usually combine nationalism with conservative stances promoting traditional cultural values, fa ...
and
social conservative
Social conservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional power structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institution ...
.
The agenda of CHEGA party is heavily focused on criminality issues, support for
the police forces of the country, and the misuse of taxpayers' money in terms of corruption at the top,
overstaffing
In Keynesian economics, underemployment equilibrium is a situation with a persistent shortfall relative to full employment and potential output so that unemployment is higher than at the NAIRU or the natural rate of unemployment, "natural" rate of ...
in the civil service at the middle and undeserving welfare recipients at the bottom.
The party advocates for a decrease of the
tax incidence
In economics, tax incidence or tax burden is the effect of a particular tax on the distribution of economic welfare. Economists distinguish between the entities who ultimately bear the tax burden and those on whom tax is initially imposed. The tax ...
, considering the current tributary system to be "brutal and aggressive to the ones who work and build wealth, taking away half of their incomes". It additionally defends a reduction of both
bureaucracy
The term bureaucracy () refers to a body of non-elected governing officials as well as to an administrative policy-making group. Historically, a bureaucracy was a government administration managed by departments staffed with non-elected offi ...
and the number of
bureaucrat
A bureaucrat is a member of a bureaucracy and can compose the administration of any organization of any size, although the term usually connotes someone within an institution of government.
The term ''bureaucrat'' derives from "bureaucracy", ...
s, asserting that it is one of the main reasons for the "Portuguese competitive economic backwardness".
The party supports
life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
and
chemical castration
Chemical castration is castration via anaphrodisiac drugs, whether to reduce libido and sexual activity, to treat cancer, or otherwise. Unlike surgical castration, where the gonads are removed through an incision in the body,[ ...]
. Some members also support the
death penalty
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
for crimes such as terrorism or child abuse; in a 2020 party referendum, 44% voted in favor.
Describing itself a strong proponent of
Western civilization
Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions">human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise ''De architectura''.
image:Plato Pio-Cle ...
, the party positions itself against
Islamist extremism
Islamic extremism, Islamist extremism, or radical Islam, is used in reference to extremist beliefs and behaviors which are associated with the Islamic religion. These are controversial terms with varying definitions, ranging from academic unde ...
and proposes stronger border controls and a decrease of "mass and illegal immigration".
It has been also described as
antiziganist
Anti-Romani sentiment (also antigypsyism, anti-Romanyism, Romaphobia, or Antiziganism) is hostility, prejudice, discrimination or racism which is specifically directed at Romani people (Roma, Sinti, Iberian Kale, Welsh Kale, Finnish Kale, Hora ...
. The party supports integration measures for immigrants and states that all immigrants and foreign residents should be "obliged to respect our rules, rites, customs and traditions." It also supports bilateral agreements and immigration from former Portuguese colonies such as Brazil, Portuguese-speaking African countries, Macau and East Timor while taking a more critical stance on non-Western immigration. It also calls for a zero tolerance policy on illegal immigration and for the deportation of immigrants with criminal records or those who are economically inactive.
It is also opposed to
multiculturalism
The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for "Pluralism (political theory), ethnic pluralism", with the tw ...
and the practice of
sharia law
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the Five Pillars of Islam, religious precepts of Islam and is based on the Islamic holy books, sacred scriptures o ...
within the Portuguese legal system, but also claims to reject xenophobia on its platform.
Chega's stance on the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
has been described as
Eurosceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek reform ...
. The party states that it supports the original "four freedoms" principle of free movement of goods, capital, services and people among member states, but argues for a "Europe of sovereign nations united by shared
Greco-Roman
The Greco-Roman civilization (; also Greco-Roman culture; spelled Graeco-Roman in the Commonwealth), as understood by modern scholars and writers, includes the geographical regions and countries that culturally—and so historically—were di ...
and
Judeo-Christian principles" and opposes interference into national political decision making within member states by the EU. It also calls on Portugal to pursue more independent foreign and economic policies from Brussels and rejects compulsory EU migrant and refugee quotas. Furthermore, the party also argues that Portugal should exit the EU if it tries to become a
federal state
A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-governi ...
.
Election results
Assembly of the Republic
Vote share in the Portuguese legislative elections
European elections
Regional Assemblies
Local elections
Presidential elections
Leadership elections
The 2020 Chega leadership election was held on 6 September 2020.
André Ventura
André Claro Amaral Ventura (; born 15 January 1983) is a right-wing Portuguese politician and former sports pundit. He briefly worked as a senior civil servant at the Portuguese tax office. He founded the Chega party in April 2019, and was ...
was re-elected with more than 99% of the vote, facing no opposition.
In 2020, the press notes the "guerrilla atmosphere" prevailing within the party, the result of tensions between the different factions that make up the party.
Critical response
Due to its
anti-establishment
An anti-establishment view or belief is one which stands in opposition to the conventional social, political, and economic principles of a society. The term was first used in the modern sense in 1958, by the British magazine ''New Statesman'' ...
,
anti-immigration
Opposition to immigration, also known as anti-immigration, has become a significant political ideology in many countries. In the modern sense, immigration refers to the entry of people from one state or territory into another state or territory ...
,
anti-Islam and
populist
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...
stances, Chega has been the target of numerous critics who underline the party's extreme views on various subjects, some of which include the negative comments regarding immigration and minorities, namely the
Roma
Roma or ROMA may refer to:
Places Australia
* Roma, Queensland, a town
** Roma Airport
** Roma Courthouse
** Electoral district of Roma, defunct
** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council
*Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
community, its opposition to certain aspects of the constitution, its criticism of the judicial leniency regarding serious crimes, and governmental over-expenditure with public services.
In response to some of the mainstream criticism, the party's president, André Ventura, denounced the accusations of racism, claiming that Chega defends equal rights and duties, and that it "doesn't desire a country on which minorities can believe they have more rights than others simply for being minorities". On 27 June 2020, the party organized a protest entitled "Portugal is not racist", where Ventura further mentioned that there is no structural racism in Portugal, and that the political left uses racism as a pretext to foment political agendas.
The party has also been targeted with critics for reusing a slightly modified version of the motto of the Portuguese dictator
António de Oliveira Salazar
António de Oliveira Salazar (, , ; 28 April 1889 – 27 July 1970) was a Portuguese dictator who served as President of the Council of Ministers from 1932 to 1968. Having come to power under the ("National Dictatorship"), he reframed the re ...
"Deus, Pátria, Família" (God, Fatherland, Family). The party has been criticized for having supporters of Salazar within their ranks.
See also
*
Assembly of the Republic
*
List of political parties in Portugal
This article lists political parties in Portugal.
The Portuguese political scene has been dominated by the Socialist Party and the Social Democratic Party since the 1974 Carnation Revolution, although the CDS – People's Party has been present i ...
*
Politics of Portugal
Politics in Portugal operates as a unitary multi-party semi-presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Portugal is the head of government, and the President of Portugal is the non-executive head of state with ...
References
External links
*
{{Political parties in Portugal
2019 establishments in Portugal
Anti-immigration politics in Europe
Antiziganism in Portugal
Anti-Islam political parties in Europe
Anti-Islam sentiment in Portugal
Conservative parties in Portugal
Eurosceptic parties in Portugal
Far-right parties in Portugal
Far-right politics in Portugal
Member parties of the Identity and Democracy Party
National conservative parties
Political parties established in 2019
Political parties in Portugal
Right-wing parties in Europe
Right-wing populism in Portugal
Right-wing populist parties