Ana Sofia Antunes

Ana Sofia Antunes
Secretary of State for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities, Portugal
In office 2015–2024
Personal details
Born	Ana Sofia Pedroso Lopes Antunes 1981 Lisbon, Portugal
Political party	Portuguese: Socialist Party (PS)
Children	One daughter
Alma mater	University of Lisbon
Occupation	Politician; Government minister

Ana Sofia Antunes (born 1981) is a Portuguese politician who, from 2015 to 2024, held the government position of Secretary of State for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities. Antunes was born blind.

Early life and education

Ana Sofia Pedroso Lopes Antunes was born in Lisbon, capital of Portugal, in 1981. She grew up in the parish of Corroios in the municipality of Seixal, south of Lisbon. Antunes was congenitally blind at birth. She obtained a degree in law from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon.^[1][2]

Career

After an internship, Antunes was admitted to the Portuguese Bar Association. After one year with a legal firm, she was invited in 2007 to work at Lisbon City Council as legal advisor to the councillor for mobility, a position she held until 2013. In 2010 she worked on the Lisbon Pedestrian Accessibility Plan. In 2013 she moved to the Lisbon Municipal Mobility and Parking Company (EMEL). Between 2013 and 2015 she held the position of president of the Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired of Portugal (ACAPO). She was also a member of the board of the European Blind Union.^[1][2][3]

Political career

In the 2015 Portuguese legislative election Antunes was a candidate on the list of the Portuguese Socialist Party (PS) for Lisbon, to become a deputy in the Assembly of the Republic. Nineteenth on the list, it was thought likely that she would be elected, but the PS only succeeded in winning 18 seats. Instead, she was appointed by the prime minister, António Costa, to be the Secretary of State for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities. She was elected in the 2019 election but was retained in the position as Secretary of State. In the 2022 election, when the PS won an overall majority, Antunes was 14th on the PS list for Lisbon and was easily elected, as the PS won 21 seats. She was again appointed as Secretary of State for Inclusion.^{[1][2][4][5][6]} In the March 2024 election, after which the PS ceased to form the government, she was elected to the National Assembly as a PS representative in the Leiria constituency.^[7]

Personal life

In December 2018 Antunes had a daughter. Her partner, and the daughter's father, is also blind.^[8]

References

1. "Ana Sofia Antunes Secretária de Estado da Inclusão das Pessoas com Deficiência". República Portuguesa. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
2. "Ana Sofia Antunes: Secretária de Estado da Inclusão das Pessoas com Deficiência". Agência para a Modernização Administrativa. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
3. "Ana Sofia Antunes - Registo de Interesses". Parlamento. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
4. "PORTUGAL - ANA SOFIA ANTUNES SWORN IN FOR A NEW TERM". European Blind Union. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
5. "Ana Sofia Antunes é a primeira secretária de Estado cega". Público. 25 November 2015. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
6. "Government Composition". República Portuguesa. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
7. "Eleições Legislativas 2024: Deputados Eleitos". CNN. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
8. "Secretária de Estado da Inclusão foi mãe". Visão. 18 December 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2022.

External links

• Antunes interviewed on UN News