Portugal to pick a new president but govt calls the shots
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A record 10 candidates are running for president of Portugal, but voters don't appear to share their enthusiasm for a job that holds no executive power in western Europe's poorest country.
An unmemorable election campaign and a runaway favorite have also combined to bore the electorate. Analysts say turnout could be unusually low in Sunday's ballot.
An alliance of anti-austerity parties is in charge in Portugal after a parliamentary election three months ago produced a Socialist minority government supported by the Communist Party and radical Left Bloc. The president's role is largely ceremonial, though the head of state can be an influential voice.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Polls suggest Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, a veteran center-right politician who became a popular television personality, will collect more than 50 percent of the vote.