San Francisco Frontiers - Socialist to face far-right candidate for Portugal's presidency

With votes from 95 percent of constituencies counted, Socialist Antonio Jose Seguro was leading with 30.6 percent of the vote, while far-right contender Andre Ventura came in second with 24.2 percent.

The liberal candidate Joao Cotrim Figueiredo was in third place with 15.5 percent.

Ventura and Seguro will face off on February 8 to decide who succeeds conservative incumbent Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.

Opinion polls in the run-up to the election had suggested that Ventura was the favourite for the first round.

This will nevertheless be the first time a far-right candidate has made it to the second round of the presidential race.

During the campaign, Seguro had argued that he was the only one capable of defeating Ventura's "extremism" and had called on "all democrats" to unite behind him.

While the role of president is largely ceremonial, in times of crisis the incumbent can dissolve parliament, call elections or dismiss a prime minister.

Portugal's prime minister, right-winger Luis Montenegro, said he would not be giving any advice on who to vote for in the second round.

His minority government already relies on Ventura's Chega party for support to implement some of its policies.

- Ventura 'confident' -

This is the first time in four decades that no candidate has won outright in the first round by securing more than 50 percent of the vote.

Ventura said he felt "very confident" after casting his vote in the sunny capital.

"We cannot spend our time criticising things and then sit on the couch on the day we are called to make a decision," he said.

"I believe in the good sense of the Portuguese," said Ventura after voting in his home city of Caldas da Rainha.

As he finished his first-round campaign, he called on other parties on the right not to stand in his way if he makes it to the second round.

And in his final election rally he toughened his tone, saying he would refuse to try to please everyone and promising to "put some order" into the country.

Voting in Lisbon, Alexandre Leitao, a 50-year-old biologist, said he had voted left wing to stave off the "very negative shift toward the far right".

"We young people are not happy with the country we have," said 33-year-old Irina Ferestreoaru.

She said public approval of Ventura was "a warning sign for the country, because people are desperate to see change".

- Far right shift -

Analysts say Ventura has his sights set on eventually running the country as prime minister.

"Andre Ventura is running to keep his voter base," said Antonio Costa Pinto, a political scientist at Lisbon University.

Chega's party emerged as the biggest opposition party in parliament after a general election last May, overtaking the Socialists.

EU and eurozone member Portugal accounts for around 1.6 percent of the bloc's economic output.

L.Ramos--SFF