"What we said is what we always say. We cannot make agreements with either Miguel Albuquerque or Paulo Cafôfo, because neither of them are candidates who are currently in a position to offer anything that would be beneficial to the people of Madeira and Porto Santo", he said, referring to the respective leaders of the PSD and PS.

Miguel Castro was speaking to journalists during a campaign event in the Bairro da Nazaré, the largest social housing complex in the region, in Funchal, where the candidacy visited some streets to make contact with the population.

"Let it be very clear: we do not have any type of agreement with either the PSD or the PS", he insisted.

The clarification came after he had indicated, on Thursday, in a debate on RTP/Madeira, that he did not reject agreements with anyone.

"I have already watched the debate five times. At no time did I say that I would make an agreement with the PSD [...], what I said at the end of the program was that Chega will always support a Government Program that is the best program for the people of Madeira and Porto Santo", he explained, emphasizing that the candidacy wants to defend "the interests of the people of Madeira and Porto Santo".

Miguel Castro, also the party leader and leader of the Chega parliamentary group in the region, reiterated that he will not make agreements with the PSD or the PS and considered that Miguel Albuquerque, leader of the archipelago's executive since 2015, does not currently have the capacity to present the best program.

"We are always supporting the best proposals for the people of Madeira and Porto Santo. I honestly do not believe that Miguel Albuquerque is currently in a position to present a Government Program - if he wins, obviously - that is the best government for the people of Madeira and Porto Santo", he said.

The Chega candidate stressed that both Miguel Albuquerque and Paulo Cafôfo are indicted in corruption investigations and, therefore, he is not available for agreements.

"We do not make agreements with these gentlemen. We are against corruption", he emphasized.

Miguel Castro repeated that he did not express any willingness to reach agreements with these parties during the television debate, emphasizing that he had only said that "within parliament, the parties all talk to each other".

"What I said was that within parliament we would all talk, that we would never make agreements, nor would we talk in corridors of power or behind smoke screens, those are my words", he said.

The Madeira regional elections on May 26 will be contested by 14 candidates for the 47 seats in the regional parliament, in a single electoral constituency: ADN, BE, PS, Livre, IL, RIR, CDU (PCP/PEV), Chega, CDS-PP, MPT, PSD, PAN, PTP and JPP.

The early elections are taking place eight months after the most recent regional elections, after the President of the Republic dissolved the Madeiran parliament, following the political crisis triggered in January, when the leader of the PSD/CDS-PP Regional Government, Miguel Albuquerque, was charged in a case involving corruption investigations.

In September 2023, the PSD/CDS coalition won without an absolute majority and elected 23 deputies. The PS won 11, the JPP five, Chega four, while the CDU, the IL, the PAN (which signed an agreement for parliamentary action with the Social Democrats) and the BE each obtained one seat.

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