The former Minister of Infrastructure won the Socialist Party primaries in Portugal on Saturday evening, before legislative elections scheduled for March.
Former Infrastructure Minister Pedro Nuno Santos won the Socialist Party primaries in Portugal on Saturday evening, ahead of legislative elections scheduled for March.
He succeeds Antonio Costa as secretary general of the PS, whose resignation from the post of Prime Minister led to early legislative elections for March 10.
“It’s a united party that we want from now on” who will work “to provide stability” in the country, declared Pedro Nuno Santos after winning 62% of the votes, according to almost final results.
This 46-year-old politician, who held government responsibilities from 2015 to 2022, comes from the left wing of the party. His political career has experienced several controversies.
The former minister in charge of Transport was forced to resign a year ago due to the scandal caused by the payment of severance pay of 500,000 euros to an administrator of the national airline TAP, while she it was the subject of a restructuring plan.
Mr. Nuno Santos faced the current Minister of the Interior José Luis Carneiro, from the centrist current of the PS, who won 36% of the votes.
“From today we are all socialists”said Mr. Carneiro after welcoming his opponent’s victory.
Socialist activists have been voting since Friday to choose a successor to Mr. Costa who resigned a month ago from his positions as Prime Minister and Secretary General of the PS, specifying that he would not seek a new mandate at the head of the country he has led since 2015.
Portugal plunged into political crisis on November 7, after a series of arrests and searches led to the indictment of Mr. Costa’s chief of staff and his Minister of Infrastructure Joao Galamba, for a trafficking case of influence.
“From Sunday, the PS will be united again and gathered behind its new leader”Mr. Costa assured Friday evening, after having ruled out retiring.
Mr. Costa, who congratulated his successor on Saturday evening, must meet with him on Sunday to talk about the transition at the head of the party.
The Socialist Party and the main opposition party, the Social Democratic Party (PSD, center right), appear neck and neck, according to several polls, and can both claim to win the March 10 election.
The entire right should obtain more deputies than the left-wing parties, while the far-right Chega party could become indispensable to a right-wing majority, by achieving a new electoral breakthrough, according to the latest polls.