# 2008 Portuguese Social Democratic Party leadership election

The 2008 Portuguese Social Democratic Party leadership election was held on 31 May 2008. This was a snap leadership election following the surprise resignation of then party leader Luís Filipe Menezes, elected just seven months before in September 2007, from the party's leadership.
Menezes was facing heavy internal criticism for his leadership and opposition strategy but, nonetheless, his resignation surprised party members and structures. Four candidates entered in this snap race: Manuela Ferreira Leite, Pedro Passos Coelho, Pedro Santana Lopes and Mário Patinha Antão.
On election day, Ferreira Leite won the leadership by capturing almost 38% of the votes, while Passos Coelho got 31% of the votes and Santana Lopes polled just below 30%. Patinha Antão polled well below 1%, just 0.7% of the party members votes.
Manuela Ferreira Leite became the first woman to lead a major political party in Portuguese history.
Ferreira Leite would lead the PSD to victory in the 2009 European Parliament election in Portugal, but was defeated in the 2009 general elections held in the fall of the same year.

## Candidates

| Name | Born | Experience | Announcement date |
| Pedro Passos Coelho | 24 August 1964 (age 43) Coimbra | Social Democratic Youth leader (1990–1995) Member of Parliament for Lisbon (1991–1999) | 18 April 2008 |
| Patinha Antão | 26 June 1945 (age 62) Loulé | Member of Parliament for Braga (1999–2002) Member of Parliament for Faro (2002–2009) | 21 April 2008 |
| Pedro Santana Lopes | 29 June 1956 (age 52) Lisbon | Prime Minister (2004-2005) President of the Social Democratic Party (2004–2005) Mayor of Lisbon (2002-2004); (2005) Mayor of Figueira da Foz (1997-2001) Secretary of State of Culture (1990-1994) Member of Parliament for Lisbon (1980–1991); (1999–2002); (2005–2009) Member of the European Parliament (1987–1989) | 24 April 2008 |
| Manuela Ferreira Leite | 3 December 1940 (age 67) Lisbon | Minister of Finance (2002–2004) Minister of Education (1993–1995) Member of Parliament for Lisbon (1999–2005); (2009–2011) Member of Parliament for Lisbon (1995–1999) | 28 April 2008 |

## Opinion polls
### All voters

| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | | | Others /Undecided | Lead |
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Ferreira Leite | Passos Coelho | Santana Lopes | Patinha Antão | Others /Undecided | Lead |
| Marktest | 17–20 May 2008 | 800 | 27.3 | 12.2 | 9.6 | — | 50.9 | 15.1 |

### PSD voters

| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | | | Others /Undecided | Lead |
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Ferreira Leite | Passos Coelho | Santana Lopes | Patinha Antão | Others /Undecided | Lead |
| Marktest | 17–20 May 2008 | 800 | 43.2 | 9.1 | 17.4 | — | 30.3 | 25.8 |

## Results

Summary of the May 2008 PSD leadership election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | 31 May 2008 | 31 May 2008 |
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Manuela Ferreira Leite | 17,278 | 37.90 |
| | Pedro Passos Coelho | 14,160 | 31.06 |
| | Pedro Santana Lopes | 13,495 | 29.60 |
| | Patinha Antão | 308 | 0.68 |
| Total | Total | 45,241 | |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 45,241 | 99.23 |
| Invalid and blank ballots | Invalid and blank ballots | 351 | 0.77 |
| Votes cast / turnout | Votes cast / turnout | 45,592 | 59.14 |
| Registered voters | Registered voters | 77,090 | |
| Sources: Official results ||||
Vote share
Manuela Ferreira Leite
37.90%
Pedro Passos Coelho
31.06%
Pedro Santana Lopes
29.60%
Patinha Antão
0.68%
Blank/Invalid
0.77% :