Pedro Nuno Santos

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is de Oliveira and the second or paternal family name is Santos.

Pedro Nuno Santos
Santos in 2022
Leader of the Opposition
Incumbent
Assumed office 2 April 2024
Prime Minister	Luís Montenegro
Preceded by	Luís Montenegro
Secretary-General of the Socialist Party
Incumbent
Assumed office 7 January 2024
President	Carlos César
Deputy	João Torres
Preceded by	António Costa
Minister of Infrastructure and Housing
In office 18 February 2019 – 4 January 2023
Prime Minister	António Costa
Preceded by	Pedro Marques (Infrastructure)
Succeeded by	João Galamba (Infrastructure) Marina Gonçalves (Housing)
Minister of Parliamentary Affairs
In office 26 November 2015 – 18 February 2019
Prime Minister	António Costa
Preceded by	Pedro Lomba
Succeeded by	Duarte Cordeiro
Member of the Assembly of the Republic
Incumbent
Assumed office 18 February 2019
Constituency	Aveiro
In office 10 March 2005 – 26 November 2015
Constituency	Aveiro
Secretary-General of the Socialist Youth
In office 18 July 2004 – 20 July 2008
Preceded by	Jamila Madeira
Succeeded by	Duarte Cordeiro
Personal details
Born	(1977-04-13) 13 April 1977 (age 47) São João da Madeira, Portugal
Political party	Socialist Party
Other political affiliations	Socialist Youth
Spouse	Ana Catarina Gamboa
Children	1
Alma mater	ISEG - Lisbon School of Economics and Management
Occupation	Economist • Politician

Pedro Nuno de Oliveira Santos (born 13 April 1977) is a Portuguese economist and politician, who is the Secretary-General of the Socialist Party. Santos previously held positions in the Portuguese Government under António Costa, first as Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs, from November 2015 to February 2019, and afterwards as Minister of Infrastructure and Housing, from February 2019 to December 2022.^[1]

Santos has a degree in economics from ISEG-UTL. He was Secretary-General of the Socialist Youth from 2004 to 2008, and a member of the Assembly of the Republic in the 10th and 12th Legislatures. As Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs in the XXI Constitutional Government, he was responsible for coordinating the confidence and supply agreement with the Communist Party, the Left Bloc and "The Greens", a government solution that became colloquially known as the geringonça.

In December 2023, Santos was elected to succeed António Costa as Secretary-General of the Socialist Party.^[2] He assumed office on 7 January 2024.

Early life and career

Santos is the son of Maria Augusta Leite de Oliveira Santos and Américo Augusto dos Santos, entrepreneur of the Tecmacal group, in the footwear and industrial equipment industries, from São João da Madeira,^[3][4] and for some time councilor for the PS in the Municipal Chamber (Town Hall) of that city.^[5]

In the associative field, Pedro Nuno Santos was President of the Student Association of the Dr. Serafim Leite Secondary School, in São João da Madeira, chairman of the Board of the General Meeting of Students (RGA) of the Superior Institute of Economics and Management (ISEG) of the Technical University of Lisbon and Member of the Directorate of the Student Association of the same, where he graduated in Economics.^[6]

Political career

Santos served a term as President of the Parish Assembly of São João da Madeira, Deputy of the Municipal Assembly of São João da Madeira, President of the Aveiro Federation of Socialist Youth and General Secretary of Socialist Youth (2004-2008).

He was a Deputy in the 10th and 12th Legislature, having been, in the last Legislature, responsible for the Economy Commission and the Parliamentary Inquiry Commission into the BES case and was vice-president of the Socialist Party Parliamentary Group and member of the Permanent Commission of the Assembly of the Republic. He was President of the Federation of Aveiro of the Socialist Party.

Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs (2015–2019)

In António Costa's first government, Santos held the position of Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs and was responsible for coordinating the parties that formed the governing solution known as "geringonça" and that joined the Socialist Party, the Communist Party, the Left Bloc and Ecologist Party "The Greens".

Santos has asserted himself as a possible candidate for PS leader, in succession to António Costa.^[7][8]

Pedro Nuno Santos makes a speech during the reopening of Portuguese Railways Maintenance Workshop in Guifões, Matosinhos, in January 2020.

Minister of Infrastructure and Housing (2019–2022)

Santos served as Minister of Infrastructure and Housing in the XXII Constitutional Government.

The investment in the railroad has been at the center of his concerns and since he took office there have been several investments made in this area, starting with the implementation of Railroad 2020. At CP, he has been responsible for a new plan for the recovery of rolling stock, which has allowed to put into service dozens of carriages and locomotives parked for many years.

He was the face of the solution found to save TAP, through public support approved in Brussels, in the amount of 1.2 billion euros, which allowed the State to keep 72.5% of the national airline. This support was equivalent to that given to all other national companies.

He has been a supporter of the construction of the new Lisbon airport at Montijo, and in the face of opposition from the Seixal and Moita municipalities to this work, he came to affirm that the law that gives this power to municipalities should be changed.^[9]

In December 2022, Santos stepped down from his post, following a public backlash over a hefty severance pay a secretary of state received from state-owned airline TAP, which fell under his remit.^[1] He was succeeded by João Galamba and Marina Gonçalves.

Secretary-General of the Socialist Party

On 13 November 2023, Santos publicly announced his candidacy for the election of the new leader of the Portuguese Socialist Party,^[10] which had been called following the resignation of António Costa from his role as Prime Minister and the scheduling of snap legislative elections.^[11][12]

On 16 December of the same year, he was officially elected as the party's new Secretary-General, winning against José Luís Carneiro with about 62% of all votes.^{[13][2][14][15]}

Political positions

Santos is one of the faces on the left wing of the PS, even attending the Avante! Festival.^[16] In an interview he said that "before there was a left wing in the PS, today there is a small right wing." Since the time he was JS leader, Santos has defended understandings between the parties of the Portuguese left.^[17]

In December 2011, when Portugal was facing a sovereign debt crisis, in a PS Christmas dinner in Castelo de Paiva, Santos suggested that Portugal could threaten not to pay its sovereign debt in those situations, and advocated that the government should question the demands of international creditors, including German bankers, or renegotiate the debt to save the Portuguese from the sacrifices of austerity.^[18][19]

Recognition

• Great Cross of Merit of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (May 26, 2009)^[20]

Personal life

Santos is 1.88 m tall. He is married to Ana Catarina Gamboa, with whom he has a son. Gamboa was also a member of the Socialist Youth and worked as Chief of Staff of the Assistant Secretary of State and Parliamentary Affairs, while Santos was Minister of Infrastructure and Housing.^[21][22]

Electoral history

São João da Madeira City Council election, 2009

Ballot: 11 October 2009

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	Seats	+/−
	PSD	Manuel Castro Almeida	6,523	56.0	5	±0
	PS	Pedro Nuno Santos	3,077	26.4	2	+1
	CDS–PP	Dina Rocha	833	7.2	0	–1
	CDU	Jorge Cortez	672	5.8	0	±0
	BE	Pedro Pardal	310	2.7	0	±0
Blank/Invalid ballots			243	2.1	–	–
Turnout			11,658	58.35	7	±0
Source: Autárquicas 2009[23]

PS leadership election, 2023

Main article: 2023 Portuguese Socialist Party leadership election

Ballot: 15 and 16 December 2023

Candidate		Votes	%
	Pedro Nuno Santos	24,219	60.8
	José Luís Carneiro	14,891	37.4
	Daniel Adrião	382	1.0
Blank/Invalid ballots		322	0.8
Turnout		39,814	68.65
Source: Diretas 2023[24]

Legislative election, 2024

Main article: 2024 Portuguese legislative election

Ballot: 10 March 2024

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	Seats	+/−
	AD	Luís Montenegro	1,867,442	28.8	80	+3
	PS	Pedro Nuno Santos	1,812,443	28.0	78	–42
	Chega	André Ventura	1,169,781	18.1	50	+38
	IL	Rui Rocha	319,877	4.9	8	±0
	BE	Mariana Mortágua	282,314	4.4	5	±0
	CDU	Paulo Raimundo	205,551	3.2	4	–2
	Livre	Rui Tavares	204,875	3.2	4	+3
	PAN	Inês Sousa Real	126,125	2.0	1	±0
	ADN	Bruno Fialho	102,134	1.6	0	±0
	Other parties		104,167	1.6	0	±0
Blank/Invalid ballots			282,243	4.4	–	–
Turnout			6,476,952	59.90	230	±0
Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições[25]

References

1. Catarina Demony (29 December 2022), Portugal's infrastructure minister quits over TAP controversy Reuters.
2. "É oficial: Pedro Nuno Santos é o 9.° secretário-geral do PS". SIC Notícias (in Portuguese). December 16, 2023. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
3. Simões, José Pedro Mozos, Rita Tavares, Sónia. "Pai de Pedro Nuno Santos também fez negócios com o Estado com o filho no Governo". Observador.
4. "Santos & Pires". Santosepires.pt. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
5. "S. João da Madeira: Pedro Nuno Santos vai tentar conquistar Câmara para o PS :: Notícias :: Portal de Aveiro ::". Aveiro, Portugal: Aveiro.co.pt. March 29, 2009. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
6. "Biografia". www.parlamento.pt.
7. Almeida, São José. "Pedro Nuno Santos: Afirmar-se para suceder a Costa, demarcando-se dele". PÚBLICO.
8. DN/Lusa. "Pedro Nuno Santos sugere a Cavaco que vote no PCP". Dn.pt. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
9. Suspiro, Agência Lusa, Ana. "Câmaras podem chumbar aeroporto do Montijo. Ministro diz que "quadro legal tem obviamente de ser revisto"". Observador.
10. Demony, Catarina; Goncalves, Sergio (November 13, 2023). "Portugal's youthful ex-minister joins race for premiership". Reuters. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
11. "PS vai escolher o próximo secretário-geral a 15 e 16 de dezembro. Congresso marcado para 6 e 7 de janeiro". CNN Portugal (in Portuguese). November 10, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
12. Constenla, Tereixa (December 15, 2023). "Los socialistas portugueses eligen entre girar a la izquierda o al centro en las primarias para suceder a António Costa". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved December 17, 2023.
13. Tommaso Lecca (17 December 2023), Portugal’s Socialists elect new leader after Costa’s resignation Politico Europe.
14. Lopes, Maria (December 17, 2023). "Pedro Nuno Santos é o novo líder do PS, com o desafio de unir o partido". PÚBLICO (in Portuguese). Retrieved December 17, 2023.
15. Constenla, Tereixa (December 17, 2023). "Los socialistas de Portugal apuestan por el izquierdismo de Pedro Nuno Santos para sustituir a António Costa en el partido". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved December 17, 2023.
16. "Secretário de Estado dos Assuntos Parlamentares sábado na Festa do 'Avante!'". PÚBLICO.
17. Catarina Maldonado Vasconcelos (July 18, 2020). "Pedro Nuno Santos defende acordo formal com partidos da esquerda". Tsf.pt. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
18. PÚBLICO, Lusa. "Declarações de Pedro Nuno Santos sobre a dívida foram "infelizes", diz Marques Guedes". PÚBLICO.
19. "YouTube". YouTube. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
20. "ENTIDADES NACIONAIS AGRACIADAS COM ORDENS ESTRANGEIRAS - Página Oficial das Ordens Honoríficas Portuguesas". Ordens.presidencia.pt. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
21. "Pedro Nuno Santos. "A Catarina não merece ser menorizada por ser minha mulher"". www.dn.pt (in European Portuguese). March 18, 2019. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
22. Portugal, Rádio e Televisão de (February 23, 2019). "O nepotismo e o Governo: mais de duas dezenas de parentescos". O nepotismo e o Governo: mais de duas dezenas de parentescos (in Portuguese). Retrieved December 18, 2023.
23. "Autárquicas 2009". SGMAI. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
24. "Resultados Provisórios Federações" (PDF). PS. December 2023. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
25. "Comissão Nacional de Eleições Mapa Oficial n.º 2-A/2024" (PDF). Comissão Nacional de Eleições. March 23, 2024. Retrieved March 23, 2024.

Political offices
Preceded by Pedro Lomba	Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs 2015–2019	Succeeded by Duarte Cordeiro
Preceded by Pedro Marques (Infrastructure)	Minister of Infrastructure and Housing 2019–2023	Succeeded by João Galamba (Infrastructure) Marina Gonçalves (Housing)
Preceded by Luís Montenegro	Leader of the Opposition 2024–present	Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by Jamila Madeira	Secretary-General of the Socialist Youth 2004–2008	Succeeded by Duarte Cordeiro
Preceded by António Costa	Secretary-General of the Socialist Party 2024–present	Incumbent