# 2018 Portuguese Social Democratic Party leadership election

The 2018 Portuguese Social Democratic Party leadership election was held on 13 January 2018. The leadership election was held after then PSD leader Pedro Passos Coelho confirmed he would not run for another term in the aftermath of the poor results of the PSD in the 2017 local elections.
Only two candidates came forward: Rui Rio, former mayor of Porto, and Pedro Santana Lopes, former PSD leader, Prime Minister and mayor of Lisbon. This was Santana Lopes 5th leadership campaign, as he also ran in 1995, 1996, 2000, and 2008. As only two candidates were on the ballot, a second round wasn't necessary. On January 13, 2018, Rui Rio defeated Pedro Santana Lopes by a 54% to 46% margin, thus becoming the new leader of the PSD. Pedro Santana Lopes was, again, defeated in a PSD leadership contest for a 5th time. Rui Rio was confirmed as the new party leader on a party national congress held in Lisbon between 16 and 18 February 2018. Six months after this leadership election, Santana Lopes left the PSD to form his own party, Alliance.

## Candidates

| Name | Born | Experience | Announcement date | Ref. |
| Pedro Santana Lopes | 29 June 1956 (age 61) 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) | 10 October 2017 | |
| Rui Rio | 6 August 1957 (age 60) Porto | Mayor of Porto (2001–2013) Member of Parliament for Porto (1991–2002) | 11 October 2017 | |

### Withdrawn candidates

* Luís Montenegro, PSD caucus leader (2011–2017)
* Miguel Pinto Luz, Deputy mayor of Cascais city (2017–Incumbent)

## Opinion polls
### All voters

| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | Other /None |
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Rui Rio | Santana Lopes | Other /None |
| Aximage | 6–9 Jan 2018 | 600 | 69.0 | 22.5 | 8.5 |
| Aximage | 1–4 Dec 2017 | 603 | 71.9 | 21.8 | 6.3 |
| Aximage | 4–6 Nov 2017 | 600 | 65.8 | 24.3 | 9.9 |
| Eurosondagem | 16–18 Oct 2017 | 1,003 | 43.3 | 42.2 | 12.5 |

### PSD voters/PSD members

| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | | | Other /None |
| Polling firm/Commissioner | Fieldwork date | Sample size | Rui Rio | Santana Lopes | Other /None |
| Eurosondagem (PSD members) | 7–9 Jan 2018 | 548 | 48.9 | 51.1 | |
| Aximage (PSD voters) | 6–9 Jan 2018 | 600 | 60.4 | 37.1 | 2.5 |
| Aximage (PSD voters) | 1–4 Dec 2017 | 603 | 70.5 | 26.8 | 2.7 |
| Aximage (PSD voters) | 4–6 Nov 2017 | 600 | 69.6 | 28.0 | 2.4 |

## Results

Summary of the January 2018 PSD leadership election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | 13 January 2018 | 13 January 2018 |
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Rui Rio | 22,728 | 54.15 |
| | Pedro Santana Lopes | 19,244 | 45.85 |
| Total | Total | 41,972 | |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 41,972 | 98.40 |
| Invalid and blank ballots | Invalid and blank ballots | 683 | 1.60 |
| Votes cast / turnout | Votes cast / turnout | 42,655 | 60.34 |
| Registered voters | Registered voters | 70,692 | |
| Sources: Official results ||||
Vote share
Rui Rio
54.15%
Pedro Santana Lopes
45.85% :