The Admiral's Mark

With so many candidates competing in Belém, how can anyone stand out from the rest? It's a huge challenge when we've broken the record for the number of candidates in this race. Luís Marques Mendes has already proudly positioned himself as the man of the system, of the rationality of democracy, and of the balance of power. António José Seguro, who wouldn't mind if the Socialist Party didn't support him, as he enjoys the wonderful support of the party's machine on the ground and doesn't need the Socialist Party, with which he split after being defeated by António Costa, without forgetting that he was the only one to break the legacy of Socratism when the other comrades pretended they didn't see anything, claims to be nonpartisan. André Ventura, strengthened by the growth of Chega, almost a miracle in just six years, maintains his position as the anti-system man.

Admiral Gouveia e Melo has created the campaign's best soundbite so far. He said that these presidential elections felt like a runoff election, due to the fact that virtually every party has its own agenda. This is unusual, because this race is based on the zeal of one man, not the whims of party machines. Well, the admiral has nailed the rudder he wants to take, and he understands ships far more than his other rivals. Gouveia e Melo dared to advance without regard for the political class's colors or wishes. It was a personal decision, solely the result of his own thinking and desires. With this independence, he will navigate the wave of Portuguese distrust in political parties, something that fuels virtually every democratic regime around the world. It's a choice that doesn't cost much, coupled with the fact that being a military man earns him an aura of authority and respect that a common politician lacks. And this is his invaluable hallmark.

The second distinctive pillar of his candidacy is his anti-Marcelo stance. Historically, cycles of power teach us that after a more relaxed and affectionate profile, the community needs to shift to a personality with more gravitas and rigor. Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa was a very popular man, strengthened by years of sympathetic television commentary. He achieved his crowning glory after the Pedrógão tragedy, when the Portuguese felt that those people needed a warm embrace from the tenant of Belém.

However, his fatal attraction to microphones, leading him to talk about everything and nothing, his excessive selfies , and the twins' affair, which severed the bond he had built with the country, completely crushed Belém's reputation. The truth is crystal clear: Marcelo trivialized his role and the institution he was supposed to preserve. Shakespeare, who understood power like no other, reflected in his brutal tragedy "Titus Andronicus": "Eagles let the birds sing, unconcerned with their merry trill, certain that with the shadow of their wings they can silence them." Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, a cultured man, knows the author's works very well, yet he has an insurmountable problem: he and silence are incompatible. Gouveia e Melo is a stark contrast to the professor. Silence will be another characteristic he seeks to impose, as a corollary of his anti-Marcelo brand.

CNN Commentator