Manuela Eanes praises President António José Seguro at Belém Book Festival

Encounter in the Belém Palace gardens

Former First Lady Manuela Eanes met Portuguese President António José Seguro on Sunday, 20 September 2026, during the final day of the Belém Book Festival. The public interaction occurred in the gardens of the Belém Palace in Lisbon, the official presidential residence once occupied by her husband, António Ramalho Eanes. Eanes offered praise to the current head of state, describing him as a leader committed to serving the country with integrity and without generating friction. She also pointed to the everyday difficulties Portuguese citizens face, observing that the population requires consistent institutional support. The former first lady commended Seguro as a dedicated leader capable of managing the responsibilities of the presidency.

This gentleman, whom I like very much, and I can say from the bottom of my heart, I think he will be a great, great, great President. He already is. Without creating problems, serving the country with integrity.

Memory of the Penamacor youth center visit

The two figures used the gathering to reminisce about their first encounter in the municipality of Penamacor during the 1980s, an episode Seguro jokingly referred to as a pleasant abduction. At the time, Seguro was 15 or 16 years old and led both a local youth center and its publication, titled A Verdade de Penamacor. When President António Ramalho Eanes arrived on an official regional visit and prepared for scheduled working sessions, the teenage Seguro approached Manuela Eanes directly and insisted she visit his facility. Although protocol staff travelling with the delegation objected that the detour was excluded from the official program, Eanes decided to proceed because she wanted to support dynamic local youth.

Seguro recounted that the youth center staff took a formal photograph with the first lady during the impromptu visit and printed it on the front page of their periodical. The president joked that Ramalho Eanes might have felt slighted because he had to share the front page rather than having it reserved solely for the head of state.

Political history and presidential endorsements

The warm exchange between Eanes and Seguro took place against the backdrop of their political interactions during the 2026 Portuguese presidential election. In the first round of the election, Manuela Eanes endorsed candidate Luís Marques Mendes rather than Seguro. Her husband, former President António Ramalho Eanes, who became Portugal's first democratically elected president following the 1974 transition to democracy, endorsed Seguro during the subsequent second round. Despite having supported different candidates earlier in the election cycle, the former first lady praised Seguro's current performance at Belém Palace.

Upcoming book launch and literary ties

As their conversation drew to a close, Manuela Eanes noted that she regularly attends the annual book fair at the presidential gardens and announced plans for an upcoming literary release. She is preparing to launch a new book scheduled for publication toward the end of 2026. Eanes informed President Seguro that the formal presentation of the volume will be conducted jointly by executive Paulo Macedo and former President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. Before departing, both figures exchanged warm personal greetings for each other's spouses, concluding the encounter before Seguro resumed his tour of the exhibition grounds.