Portuguese voters head to polls in tight general election

Portuguese voters headed to the polls on Sunday, facing a choice between switching to a centre-right government or keeping the centre-left in power, although neither appears to have a clear path to a full majority.

The far-right Chega party has been growing in clout and could play a role in post-election talks.

The issues dominating the campaign in western Europe’s poorest country include a crippling housing crisis, low wages, sagging healthcare and corruption, seen by many as endemic to the mainstream parties.

Polling stations opened at 8 am (0800 GMT) and close at 7 pm in mainland Portugal and an hour later on the Azores archipelago. Results are expected around midnight.

The early election, four months after Socialist Prime Minister Antonio Costa’s sudden resignation amid a graft investigation, again pits against each other the two centrist parties – the Socialist Party (PS) and the Social Democratic Party (PSD) – that have alternated in power since the end of a fascist dictatorship five decades ago.