Portugal’s ruling centre-right Democratic Alliance (AD) is poised to win the most votes in an early parliamentary election, but is short of a full majority, exit polls have shown, paving the way for more political instability in the country.

Sunday’s election, the third in as many years, was called just one year into the minority government’s term after Prime Minister Luis Montenegro failed to win a parliamentary vote of confidence in March when the opposition questioned his integrity over the dealings of his family’s consultancy firm.

Montenegro has denied any wrongdoing, and most opinion polls showed that voters have dismissed the opposition’s criticism.

The election, also dominated by issues such as housing and immigration, follows a decade of fragile governments. And the only one of those governments to have a parliamentary majority collapsed halfway through its term last year.

Exit polls published by the three main television channels – SIC, RTP and TVI – put Montenegro’s AD as receiving between 29 percent and 35.1 percent of the vote, garnering the biggest share but again no parliamentary majority, similar to what happened in the previous election in March 2024.

Outside the polling station where Montenegro voted in the northern city of Espinho, Irene Medeiros, 77, told Reuters the “best candidate must win”, but that she feared more uncertainty ahead.

According to the exit polls, Montenegro’s main rival, the centre-left Socialist Party (PS), garnered between 19.4 percent and 26 percent of the vote, nearly tied with the far-right Chega party’s 19.5 percent to 25.5 percent share, which is higher than the 18 percent it won in 2024. Montenegro has refused to make any deals with Chega.

With that tally, the DA could get between 85 and 96 seats, short of the 116 needed for a majority in Portugal’s 230-seat parliament. It could form a minority government or forge partnerships with smaller parties to obtain a majority.

Most official results are expected by midnight (23:00 GMT).

For the last half century, two parties have dominated politics in Portugal, with the Social Democrats, who head the DA, and the PS alternating in power.

Public frustration with their record in government has fuelled the search and for growth of new alternatives in recent years.

“This campaign was very, very weak, had ridiculous moments, like clownish. Very little was spoken about Portugal within the European Union – it’s like we are not part of it,” teacher Isabel Monteiro, 63, told the Associated Press news agency in Lisbon, adding that she felt “disenchantment” with all parties.

Political scientist Antonio Costa Pinto said the new parliament would likely be similar to the last, and it was impossible to predict how long the government would last, as it depended on factors ranging from the international situation to the AD’s ability to reach deals with other parties.

“The only doubt is whether the AD will form a new minority government … or whether it will form a post-electoral coalition with IL, even if this coalition does not guarantee an absolute majority,”, referring to the pro-business Liberal Initiative (IL) party, according to Reuters.

Shortly after casting his own ballot, Montenegro told reporters he was confident stability could be achieved.

“There is a search for a stable solution, but that will now depend on [people’s] choices,” he said.

A second consecutive minority government in Portugal would dash hopes for an end to the worst spell of political instability in decades for the European Union country of 10.6 million people.

For the past 50 years, two parties have dominated politics, with the Social Democrats, who head the DA, and the Socialist Party alternating in power.

Richard Linklater sounded off on Trump’s tariff threat on foreign-made films during the Cannes press conference for his new film “Nouvelle Vague,” saying: “That’s not going to happen right?”

Linklater shot “Nouvelle Vague,” which chronicles the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s “Breathless,” in France. When asked if he had any thoughts on Trump’s recent threat to impose a 100% tax on films made outside of the U.S., the director doubted the viability of the proposal.

“The tariff thing, that’s not going to happen right? That guy changes his mind like 50 times in one day,” Linklater said. “It’s the one export industry in the U.S., it would be kind of dumb to… Whatever, we don’t have to talk about that.”

On if it has become more expensive to make films in the U.S., Linklater said: “I think the true indie film, the no-budget film, has cost the same for the last 60 years. It’s always about how much you have, so that doesn’t change much.”

Zoey Deutch, who plays “Breathless” leading lady Jean Seberg in the film, then chimed in to say that “it would be nice to make more movies in Los Angeles.”

“The history and the studios and the culture and the crews, it would be so beautiful,” she said. “I just finished doing a movie there and it was magical in the same way that Paris is magical and has this history. I would love for there to be more movies in Los Angeles.”

Linklater agreed and added that he “really admires” the French for “taking care” of their film industry. “They make sure it’s healthy and they nurture it and they help it. The government, everyone is all in,” he said. “From production to distribution, they care. And our country, the U.S., could use a little bit of that.”

“Nouvelle Vague” premiered at Cannes on Saturday night to an enthusiastic ovation. Guillaume Marbeck stars as Godard in “Nouvelle Vague,” with Aubry Dullin playing “Breathless” star Jean-Paul Belmondo. The movie is Linklater’s first project shot in French. Variety’s Owen Gleiberman called the movie a highlight of the 2025 festival, writing: “Guillaume Marbeck is so perfect as Jean-Luc Godard he’s uncanny. And so is the whole movie.”

Elsewhere in the conference, Linklater reflected on the current state of cinema, saying that he’s “optimistic” due to the passion he’s seen from young people, who he called the “Letterboxd generation.”

“Cinema is optimistic — it has to be,” Linklater said. “It always feels under attack, you know? I’ve had movies out for over 30 years now and it’s always, ‘Things are terrible, it’s tough.’ And it is tough, it’s a struggle — but it always has been.”

He continued: “There’s new threats, but there’s something perpetual. We like stories told to us, we like the format of feature films. There’s more films than ever being made, indie films, it’s just harder to get them seen. But we adapt.”

Pope Leo XIV has affirmed traditional Catholic doctrine regarding marriage, saying that it is founded on the “stable union between a man and a woman.”

The pope, who was elected to lead the Catholic Church on May 8, was making his first major remarks as pontiff during a private audience with the Vatican’s diplomatic corps on Friday, where he also stressed the inherent dignity of the frail and vulnerable, including the unborn, elderly and immigrants.

“It is the responsibility of government leaders to work to build harmonious and peaceful civil societies,” the pope said. “This can be achieved above all by investing in the family, founded upon the stable union between a man and a woman.”

While Pope Francis also said the Church could not accept same-sex marriage, conservatives accused the late pontiff of sowing confusion among the faithful by being more welcoming than his predecessors to LGBTQ people and approving the blessing of individuals in same-sex relationships.

FOOTBALL LEGEND LOU HOLTZ CALLS ON CATHOLICS TO ‘DEFEND AND ENCOURAGE’ POPE LEO XIV

Pope Leo, the first American to lead the Catholic Church and a member of the Augustinian order, reaffirmed the Church’s position against abortion, called for protection of religious freedom and said he would continue to pursue inter-religious dialogue.

“No one is exempted from striving to ensure respect for the dignity of every person, especially the most frail and vulnerable, from the unborn to the elderly, from the sick to the unemployed, citizens and immigrants alike,” Leo said.

The gathering with the Vatican’s diplomatic corps is standard protocol following the election of a new pope and allows him to greet representatives of world governments ahead of his formal installation Mass on Sunday. Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, along with many other world leaders, will attend the mass, the Vatican said. 

In emphasizing dignity for immigrants, Pope Leo noted that his own family had immigrated to the United States. His remarks could lead to friction with President Donald Trump, who seeks to deport millions of illegal immigrants from the U.S. Trump and Pope Francis also publicly clashed on immigration. 

Pope Leo XIV meets with the Diplomatic Corps prior to his inaugural mass. (Vatican Media)

MEDIA POSITIONS POPE LEO XIV AS POTENTIAL ‘COUNTERWEIGHT’ TO TRUMP

“My own story is that of a citizen, the descendant of immigrants, who in turn chose to emigrate,” Pope Leo told ambassadors at the Vatican.

“All of us, in the course of our lives, can find ourselves healthy or sick, employed or unemployed, living in our native land or in a foreign country, yet our dignity always remains unchanged. It is the dignity of a creature willed and loved by God,” he added.

Pope Leo’s father was of French and Italian descent, while his mother was of Spanish descent.

Pope Leo XIV appears at the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, on May 8, 2025.  (Andrew Medichini/AP)

Pope Leo called on attendees to keep in mind three essential words – “peace,” “justice” and “truth” – and said that they represent the pillars of the church’s missionary activity and the aim of the Holy See’s diplomacy. 

Truth, for instance, he said, “does not create division, but rather enables us to confront all the more resolutely the challenges of our time, such as migration, the ethical use of artificial intelligence and the protection of our beloved planet Earth.”

“These are challenges that require commitment and cooperation on the part of all, since no one can think of facing them alone.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.