Portugal far-right leader suffers second collapse days before election

LISBON (Reuters) - The leader of Portugal's far-right party Chega collapsed on Thursday during an open-air campaign rally ahead of Sunday's general election and was rushed to a hospital, just two days after suffering a similar incident at another party event.

In videos from the rally in Odemira in southern Portugal that circulated online, Andre Ventura, 42, could be seen grabbing his chest and trying to undo his tie before collapsing into the arms of his aides who carried him away.

Ventura was discharged from a hospital in Faro only on Wednesday after his previous collapse. The hospital said he had an esophageal spasm caused by gastric reflux and high blood pressure.

Chega lawmaker Marta Silva told CNN Portugal the electrocardiogram in an ambulance immediately after the second collapse showed that "everything is well with his heart" and it was likely another esophageal spasm.

In a video posted on X on Wednesday referring to this week's earlier collapse, Ventura said he was recovering well from what he called "a very, very frightening episode that I felt for the first time in my life".

Ventura founded the anti-establishment Chega in 2019, advocating tougher sentences for criminals, including chemical castration for repeat rapists, calling for an end to Portugal's "open doors" immigration policy and accusing the mainstream political parties of perpetuating corruption.

Chega became the third-largest parliamentary force in 2022 and quadrupled its parliamentary seats in an election last year to 50 after running on a platform of fighting corruption and immigration. But most analysts say the party is a one-man show owing its success to Ventura's fiery eloquence, charisma and good looks.

Ventura is a law postgraduate who once trained to be a priest but who made his name as a TV sports commentator. He gained notoriety in 2018 with incendiary remarks against the local Roma community.

Ahead of Sunday's election, opinion polls show Chega in third place, little changed from its 2024 result of 18%, its meteoric rise apparently stalled by recent scandals involving several senior party members.

(Reporting by Andrei Khalip; Editing by Frances Kerry)