ERICEIRA, Portugal — Donald Trump is bleeding support on the European far right
The leader of populist Portuguese party Chega has joined a chorus of nationalist politicians criticizing the U.S. president — their ideological ally — over the war in Iran and its ripple effect on fuel prices.
"There were lots of mistakes that President Trump committed in the last months. The war in Iran is affecting the world economy," Chega President André Ventura said on the sidelines of an event organized by the populist, pan-continental Patriots' foundation in the beach city of Ericeira, near Lisbon.
Ventura, whose party has surged in recent election cycles, is often described as a Portuguese Trump for his confrontational tactics and heated campaign rhetoric targeting Portugal's ruling elite. The Chega leader traveled to Washington, D.C. for Trump's inauguration and borrowed the MAGA slogan during last year's parliamentary election campaign, saying he wanted to "make Portugal great again."
But with Portugal now among many European countries hit by increasing fuel prices caused by war in the Middle East, Ventura appears to be turning on his American role model — like other populist chiefs across Europe who have jabbed the U.S. president's "erratic" war goals or walked back support in the face of a snowballing cost-of-living crisis.
"I wish this war didn't exist, especially for Portugal, Spain, France, Italy. We are paying more than the United States the pr…
AI Brief
Your highlights
News
Politics
Chega boss André Ventura discusses the U.S. president and cooperation with Germany's AfD in an interview with POLITICO.
"There were lot of mistakes that President Trump committed in the last months. The war in Iran is affecting the world economy," Chega President André Ventura. | Marion Solletty/POLITICO
October 1, 2026
4:00 am CET
ERICEIRA, Portugal — Donald Trump is bleeding support on the European far right
The leader of populist Portuguese party Chega has joined a chorus of nationalist politicians criticizing the U.S. president — their ideological ally — over the war in Iran and its ripple effect on fuel prices.
"There were lots of mistakes that President Trump committed in the last months. The war in Iran is affecting the world economy," Chega President André Ventura said on the sidelines of an event organized by the populist, pan-continental Patriots' foundation in the beach city of Ericeira, near Lisbon.
Ventura, whose party has surged in recent election cycles, is often described as a Portuguese Trump for his confrontational tactics and heated campaign rhetoric targeting Portugal's ruling elite. The Chega leader traveled to Washington, D.C. for Trump's inauguration and borrowed the MAGA slogan during last year's parliamentary election campaign, saying he wanted to "make Portugal great again."
But with Portugal now among many European countries hit by increasing fuel prices caused by war in the Middle East, Ventura appears to be turning on his American role model — like other populist chiefs across Europe who have jabbed the U.S. president's "erratic" war goals or walked back support in the face of a snowballing cost-of-living crisis.
"I wish this war didn't exist, especially for Portugal, Spain, France, Italy. We are paying more than the United States the price for this war," he said during the interview. "It's not very fair that one country starts the war and the others pay for the costs."
Residents and antifascist activists protest outside the Patriots' event venue. | Marion Solletty/POLITICO
The former sports commentator turned leading politician — whose early steps in politics were marred by controversies over comments widely criticized as racist — has elevated his party from barely registering in the polls to becoming the largest opposition group in the Portuguese parliament. He secured a third of the votes in February's presidential election.
His recent electoral gains place Ventura among several far-right leaders and parties currently surging across the continent. Representatives from several of his European allies, including France's National Rally, Spain's Vox, Hungary's Fidesz and Italy's League, traveled to the Ericeira event where they shared views closely aligned with the MAGA-boosted narrative that Europe is suffering civilizational decline because of uncontrolled immigration and crippling regulation.
Ventura urged like-minded European politicians to unite, including by working with parties currently not part of the continental Patriots alliance, such as the Alternative for Germany. The AfD was kicked out of the ID Group, one of the precursors to the Patriots, in 2024 over downplaying Germany's Nazi past. Its stellar performance in this month's regional elections in eastern Germany has highlighted a schism in Europe between far-right parties eager to soften their image and those, like the AfD, who are doubling down on their radical positioning.
"I think we have to cooperate and collaborate within our values and principles," Ventura said, despite having "different positions" on some subjects, chief among them Russia and Ukraine.
Asked whether the AfD's pro-Russian positions were an obstacle to deeper cooperation, Ventura said they shouldn't be. "We stand with Ukraine in the war, we will keep standing with Ukraine," he said, adding that "we don't have to be thinking the same on all issues … The AfD is fighting against illegal immigration, against crime and to give more authority for police services so we have a lot of things in common."
Chega's growth is not without backlash in Portugal. As Ventura was talking to reporters in Ericeira over the weekend, some 150 residents and antifascist activists protested outside the Patriots' event venue, forcing attendees and speakers from sister European parties to enter and exit to the sound of loud shouting and under tight security watch.