Portugal's Socialists win re-election

Portugal's incumbent Prime Minister Antonio Costa's Socialists won a general election marked by low turnout on Sunday after presiding over a period of solid economic growth following years of austerity.

The Socialist Party (PS) took 36.65 per cent of the vote, followed by the centre-right Social Democrats (PSD) with 27.9 per cent, according to near total results from the interior ministry.

That left the PS, which has governed for the past four years with the support of two smaller hard-left parties, with 106 seats in the 230-seat parliament, up from 86 seats in the outgoing assembly and just ten seats short of an outright majority.

Four seats still must be attributed according to the results of votes cast abroad.

The election bucks the trend of declining centre-left fortunes and the rise of far-right populist forces seen elsewhere in Europe.

A new far-right formation, Chega! or "That's Enough!" entered parliament for the first time but it won a single seat.

Turnout was just 54.5 per cent, the lowest level for a general election since Portugal returned to democracy after a decades-long right-wing dictatorship was toppled in 1974.

The question now is who Costa, 58, a former Lisbon mayor, will pick as his allies. After the last general election in 2015 in which the PS finished second, Costa convinced the Communists and the Left Bloc to support a minority Socialist government, an unprecedented alliance that foes nicknamed the "geringonca", or odd contraption.

During his victory speech Costa said he wanted to "renew this experience" of an alliance with the hard-left.

"The election shows that the Portuguese like the 'geringonca', they like this political solution," he said as supporters chanted "Victory!".

"Stability is essential for Portugal's international credibility and for attracting investors. The PS will strive to find solutions that ensure this stability for the entire legislature."