António Luís Santos da Costa GCIH (Portuguese: [ɐ̃ˈtɔnju ˈkɔʃtɐ]; born 17 July 1961)[3] is a Portuguese lawyer and politician who served as the 118th prime minister of Portugal from 2015 to 2024, presiding over the XXI (2015–2019), XXII (2019–2022) and XXIII Constitutional Governments (2022–2024). Following this, Costa will take up the post of President of the European Council in December 2024.[4]

António Costa
Costa in 2024
President-designate of the European Council
Assuming office
1 December 2024
SucceedingCharles Michel
Prime Minister of Portugal
In office
26 November 2015 – 2 April 2024
PresidentAníbal Cavaco Silva
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa
Preceded byPedro Passos Coelho
Succeeded byLuís Montenegro
Secretary-General of the Socialist Party
In office
22 November 2014 – 7 January 2024
PresidentCarlos César
DeputyAna Catarina Mendes
José Luís Carneiro
João Torres
Preceded byAntónio José Seguro
Succeeded byPedro Nuno Santos
Leader of the Opposition
In office
22 November 2014 – 26 November 2015
Prime MinisterPedro Passos Coelho
Preceded byAntónio José Seguro
Succeeded byPedro Passos Coelho
Mayor of Lisbon
In office
1 August 2007 – 6 April 2015
Preceded byCarmona Rodrigues
Succeeded byFernando Medina
Minister of Internal Administration
In office
12 March 2005 – 17 May 2007
Prime MinisterJosé Sócrates
Preceded byDaniel Sanches
Succeeded byRui Pereira
Minister of Justice
In office
25 October 1999 – 6 April 2002
Prime MinisterAntónio Guterres
Preceded byJosé Vera Jardim
Succeeded byCeleste Cardona
Minister of Parliamentary Affairs
In office
27 November 1997 – 25 October 1999
Prime MinisterAntónio Guterres
Preceded byAntónio Couto dos Santos
Succeeded byLuís Marques Mendes
Member of the Assembly of the Republic[1][2]
In office
23 October 2015 – 26 March 2024
ConstituencyLisbon
In office
5 April 2002 – 9 March 2005
ConstituencyLeiria
In office
4 November 1991 – 26 October 1995
ConstituencyLisbon
Member of the European Parliament
In office
20 July 2004 – 11 March 2005
ConstituencyPortugal
Personal details
Born
António Luís Santos da Costa

(1961-07-17) 17 July 1961 (age 63)
Lisbon, Portugal
Political partySocialist Party (since 1975)
Height1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Spouse
Fernanda Tadeu
(m. 1987)
Children2
Parents
Alma materUniversity of Lisbon
Signature
Websiteportugal.gov.pt/pm
Military service
Allegiance Portugal
Branch/servicePortuguese Army

Previously, he was Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs from 1995 to 1997, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs from 1997 to 1999, Minister of Justice from 1999 to 2002, Minister of Internal Administration from 2005 to 2007, as well as Mayor of Lisbon from 2007 to 2015. He was elected Secretary-General of the Socialist Party in 2014, a post he held until early 2024.[5]

On 7 November 2023, Costa resigned following an investigation involving members of his government in connection with alleged corruption and malfeasance in handling lithium mining and hydrogen projects in the country.[6][7]

The President of Portugal decided to dissolve Parliament and called for a snap election, held in 10 March 2024. Costa stayed as Prime Minister in a caretaker capacity until his successor, hitherto leader of the opposition Luís Montenegro, was sworn-in on 2 April 2024.[8][9]

Early life and education

Costa was born in 1961 in Lisbon, Portugal, the son of writer Orlando da Costa and journalist Maria Antónia Palla. Orlando da Costa was half French-Mozambican and half Indian; his father was born in Maputo, Mozambique, to a Goan family.[10][11] In Goa, Costa is affectionately known as Babush, a word in Konkani meaning a young loved one.[12]

Costa graduated from the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon in the 1980s, when he first entered politics and was elected as a Socialist deputy to the municipal council. He completed the mandatory military service in 1987[13] and later practiced law briefly from 1988, before entering politics full-time.[14]

Political career

António Costa joined the Socialist Youth in 1975, at the age of fourteen.[15] In the 1982 local elections, Costa was elected as a member of the Lisbon municipal assembly, being re-elected in 1985 and 1989.[16] In the 1991 legislative election, Costa was elected as member of the Assembly of the Republic from the district of Lisbon.[17]

For the 1993 local elections, Costa was picked as the mayoral candidate for the municipality of Loures, a suburb of Lisbon.[18] This contest threw national attention because Costa did a campaign stunt by promoting a race between a Ferrari and a Donkey in order to highlight the difficulty in roads and transportation to Lisbon, and to point for the necessity of better roads and a subway connection to Loures.[19] Costa narrowly lost the mayoral race to the Unitary Democratic Coalition (CDU) candidate by a 35 to 34 percent margin.[20]

In the 1996 presidential election, António Costa was the campaign director of Jorge Sampaio's successful run for the Presidency of the Republic.[21] Costa's first role in a Socialist government was as Minister of Parliamentary Affairs under Prime Minister António Guterres between 1997 and 1999. In Guterres' second term, Costa held the office of Minister of Justice from 1999 to 2002.[14] Costa also coordinated the organization of the Expo '98 in Lisbon.[22]

In the 2002 legislative election, Costa was elected a member of parliament from the district of Leiria and, due the defeat of the PS in this election, became the party's parliamentary leader in opposition.[17] During the 2003 Casa Pia child sexual abuse scandal, António Costa's name was involved in wiretaps where he appears to want to interfere with the Public Prosecutor's Office to avoid the arrest of the PS deputy Paulo Pedroso.[23] Costa was a member of the European Parliament for the Socialist Party (PES), heading the list for the 2004 European elections after the death of top candidate António de Sousa Franco. On 20 July 2004 he was elected as one of the 14 vice-presidents of the European Parliament. He also served on the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs.[24]

Costa resigned as an MEP on 11 March 2005 to become Minister of State and Internal Administration in the government of José Sócrates following the 2005 national elections.[25]

Mayor of Lisbon

António Costa resigned all government offices in May 2007 to become his party's candidate for the municipality of Lisbon, Portugal's capital city. He was elected as Lisbon's mayor on 15 July 2007 and reelected in 2009 and 2013, with a bigger majority each time. In April 2015 he resigned his duties as a mayor, while he was already the secretary general of the Socialist Party and the party's candidate for Prime Minister, so that he could prepare his campaign for the October 2015 general elections.[26]

Candidate for prime minister

In September 2014, the Socialist Party chose Costa as its candidate to be prime minister of Portugal in the 2015 national elections. In a ballot to select the party's candidate, gaining nearly 70 percent of the votes, he defeated party leader António José Seguro, who announced his resignation after the result.[27] By April 2015, he stepped down as mayor to focus on his campaign.[28]

During the campaign, Costa pledged to ease back on austerity and give more disposable income back to households.[29] He proposed to boost incomes, hiring and growth in order to cut the budget deficits while scrapping austerity measures and cutting taxes for the middle and lower classes, asserting that would still allow deficits to reduce in line with the Euro convergence criteria.[30] Also, he pledged to roll back a hugely unpopular hike in value added tax on restaurants and reinstate some benefits for civil servants.[28]

Prime Minister of Portugal

First term (2015–2019)

 
Costa at the Informal EU-Leaders' Meeting in Salzburg in 2018.

On 4 October 2015, the conservative Portugal Ahead coalition that had ruled the country since 2011 came first in the elections winning 38.6% of the vote, while the Socialist Party (PS) came second with 32.3%. Passos Coelho was reappointed Prime Minister the following days, but António Costa formed an alliance with the other parties on the left (the Left Bloc, the Portuguese Communist Party and the Ecologist Party "The Greens"), which altogether constituted a majority in Parliament, and toppled the government on 10 November (the People–Animals–Nature party also voted in favour of the motion of rejection presented by the left alliance). After toppling the conservative government, Costa was chosen as the new prime minister of Portugal by President Cavaco Silva on 24 November and assumed office on 26 November.[26][31]

By March 2017, polls put support for Costa's Socialists at 42 percent, up 10 points from their share of the vote in the 2015 election and close to a level that would give them a majority in parliament were the country to vote again.[32] In the 2017 local elections, Costa further consolidated power in Portugal as his party captured a record haul of 158 town halls out of the country's 308 cities and towns; nationwide, the Socialists’ vote share topped 38 percent, again up from their result in the 2015 parliamentary election.[33]

 
Costa with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in Lisbon, 2 July 2018.

During his tenure, Portugal experienced its deadliest wildfires ever, firstly in Pedrogão Grande in June 2017 (65 dead) and later across the country in October 2017 (41 dead).[34] In October 2017, the opposition People's Party (CDS) launched a motion of no-confidence in Costa's government over its failure to prevent the loss of human lives in the lethal Iberian wildfires, the second such disaster in four months; the motion was largely symbolic as the minority Socialist government continued to be backed in parliament by two left-wing parties.[35]

In April 2018, Reuters reported that, "Since coming to power, Costa's government has managed to combine fiscal discipline with measures to support growth, while reversing most of the austerity policies imposed by the previous center-right administration during the 2010–13 debt crisis.[36]

In early 2019, Costa's government survived another opposition motion of no confidence lodged over a wave of public sector strikes.[37] Ahead of the 2019 national elections, Costa ruled out a coalition government with the hard left if, as expected, his governing party won the election but fell shy of a parliamentary majority. Instead, he indicated he favored a continuation of the current pact in parliament with the Communists and/or the Left Bloc – rather than any formal coalition in which they would have government ministers.[38]

Second term (2019–2022)

 
Costa meets with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Lisbon, Portugal on 5 December 2019.
 
Costa with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev in the European Council Summit in Brussels, 22 October 2021.

Costa's second government was sworn in on 26 October 2019,[39] the biggest government in Portuguese democracy, with 70 members: 20 ministers, including the Prime Minister, and 50 secretaries of state.[40] This government would prove to be very unstable due to the lack of an agreement between the left-wing parties, and, in the vote of the 2020 budget, BE and CDU abstained while the Socialists were the only party voting in favour.[41]

Despite the political instability from the lack of an agreement, the XXII government was dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The first case appeared on 2 March 2020, and shortly after, the government declared a state of emergency, that was signed by the President, and a lockdown was also issued.[42] The lockdown and restrictions were lifted in June 2020, but new measures would be enacted in the following months as infections and deaths rose. By mid 2022, Portugal had become one the worst affected countries in the world by the pandemic, with a death rate of 25.8 per 1 million, and an infection rate of 1,090 per 1 million.[43] The Covid vaccination campaign in Portugal, led by Admiral Henrique Gouveia e Melo, which was nominated by the government, was a major success with more than 28 million vaccines given and nearly 9 million people fully vaccinated (85% of the population), one of the biggest rates in the world.[44]

Between 1 January and 30 June 2021, António Costa presided the Council of the European Union. In the 2021 local elections, the Socialist Party remained the largest party in the country, but suffered heavy loses in several cities, especially Lisbon which was lost to a center-right coalition.[45] The results were seen as a "yellow card" to António Costa.[46] At the same time, the left-wing parties, BE and CDU, were threatening to reject the 2022 budget if Costa's government didn't made more concessions.[47] The President warned that budget rejection would lead to snap elections, which ultimately happened as the left-wing parties joined forces with the right-wing and rejected the 2022 budget, the first rejection in democracy.[48] Snap elections were called for 30 January 2022.

Third term (2022–2024)

 
Costa with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on 21 May 2022.
 
Costa with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on 24 April 2023.

Costa was re-elected in the 2022 Portuguese legislative election, with the PS winning 120 seats, up from 108 seats, in a surprise outright majority in the Assembly. In the weeks leading up to the election, polling suggested that Costa and the Socialist party would retain their status as the largest party in the Assembly but would need the help of other parties to achieve a majority. In his victory speech, Costa thanked voters for giving him "an increased responsibility" and promising to govern "with and for all Portuguese".[49] This gave him the mandate to form the XXIII Constitutional Government of Portugal.[50]

Costa’s third term was marred by a wave of scandals and resignations that affected his popularity negatively in the opinion polls.[51] 11 ministers and secretaries of state left their roles, over allegations of corruption and past misconduct or questionable practices.[52] The most significant scandal was the TAP scandal where Costa’s government has been involved. Infrastructure Minister Pedro Nuno Santos submitted his resignation in December 2022, following a public backlash over a hefty severance pay a secretary of state received from state-owned TAP, which fell under his remit.[53]

Costa replaced Santos with João Galamba who submitted his resignation in May 2023 as the TAP scandal widened. Opposition parties said that Galamba concealed from parliament that he had proposed that then TAP CEO Christine Ourmières-Widener meet Socialist lawmakers to prepare for a parliamentary hearing about her severance package. Widener was later fired after an official inspection found that the severance was illegal. Galamba initially said the preparatory meeting was TAP's idea, but acknowledged it was he who had told Widener that, if she wanted, she could attend the meeting where his advisors would also be present.[54]

Galamba added that one of his advisors, who took notes on what was discussed at the meeting, had been fired, and taken a laptop with confidential information with him. The laptop was later recovered by the national intelligence service SIS, leading to accusations from the opposition of a government overreach since such cases were a police matter. Costa denied that neither he nor any member of the government had given orders to SIS to recover the laptop.[54] He added that he would reject the resignation of Galamba, keeping him in the job against president Marcelo Rebelo De Sousa's and the opposition’s request.[55] President Rebelo de Sousa responded by issuing a warning that Costa's government needed to work on preserving its credibility, while refraining from using his power to dissolve parliament.[56]

Resignation

 
Costa announcing his resignation, on 7 November 2023

On 7 November 2023, Portuguese prosecutors detained Costa's chief of staff Vítor Escária and named João Galamba a formal suspect[57] in an investigation into alleged corruption in lithium mining, green hydrogen production and a data centre deals. Over 40 searches were carried out, some of which in government and local government buildings, including Escária's office, the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Action.[58][59] Costa was also under suspicion of enabling the lithium and green hydrogen deals, and was to be inquired by the Supreme Court of Justice.[60]

In a televised statement in the afternoon, Costa announced his resignation from the position of prime minister, saying that "the dignity of the functions of prime minister is not compatible with any suspicion about his integrity, his good conduct and even less with the suspicion of the practice of any criminal act".[6]

The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, accepted Costa's resignation on the same day.[61] However, the resignation of Costa and his government was only made official on 8 December, in order to have the State Budget for 2024 approved. The Assembly of the Republic was also dissolved. The president scheduled early elections to be held on 10 March 2024. Costa's government remained in office in a caretaker capacity until the new government (led by Luis Montenegro) was sworn in after the elections.[8][62][9]

The investigation has since attracted criticism after the prosecutors admitted several mistakes, including confusion between the names of António Costa and then Minister of Economy António Costa Silva in the transcript of a wiretap.[63][64][65]

President of the European Council

 
António Costa with Giorgia Meloni after his election as EU Council President.

In the aftermath of the 2024 European Parliament election, Costa was seen as the frontrunner candidate for the Presidency of the European Council.[66] On 27 June 2024, António Costa was elected as President of the European Council, one of the three most important leadership posts of the European Union, by the 27 EU member state leaders.[4]

Personal life

In 1987, Costa married Fernanda Maria Gonçalves Tadeu, a teacher.[14] The couple have a son and a daughter. Costa also holds an Overseas Citizenship of India.[67]

Costa is a supporter of the football club S.L. Benfica,[68] and was a frequent spectator at their matches while mayor of Lisbon. He also accompanied Benfica to both UEFA Europa League finals, in 2013 and 2014.

Electoral history

Loures City Council election, 1993

Ballot: 12 December 1993
Party Candidate Votes % Seats +/−
CDU Demétrio Alves 55,524 34.6 4 –1
PS António Costa 53,749 33.5 4 +1
PSD João Malato Correia 34,727 21.7 3 ±0
CDS–PP 6,348 4.0 0 ±0
PCTP/MRPP 4,117 2.6 0 ±0
Blank/Invalid ballots 5,829 3.6
Turnout 160,294 61.01 11 ±0
Source: Autárquicas 1993[69]

European Parliament election, 2004

Ballot: 13 June 2004
Party Candidate Votes % Seats +/−
PS António Costa[a] 1,516,001 44.5 12 ±0
FP João de Deus Pinheiro 1,132,769 33.3 9 –2
CDU Ilda Figueiredo 309,401 9.1 2 ±0
BE Miguel Portas 167,313 4.9 1 +1
PCTP/MRPP Garcia Pereira 36,294 1.1 0 ±0
Other parties 108,338 3.2 0 ±0
Blank/Invalid ballots 134,166 4.0
Turnout 3,404,782 38.60 24 –1
Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições[70]

Lisbon City Council by-election, 2007

Ballot: 15 July 2007
Party Candidate Votes % Seats +/−
PS António Costa 56,732 29.5 6 +1
Ind. Carmona Rodrigues 31,990 16.6 3 new
PSD Fernando Negrão 30,401 15.8 3 –5
Ind. Helena Roseta 19,754 10.3 2 new
CDU Ruben de Carvalho 18,163 9.4 2 ±0
BE José Sá Fernandes 13,132 6.8 1 ±0
CDS–PP Telmo Correia 7,148 3.7 0 –1
PCTP/MRPP Garcia Pereira 3,021 1.6 0 ±0
Other parties 4,530 2.3 0 ±0
Blank/Invalid ballots 7,483 3.9
Turnout 192,354 36.70 17 ±0
Source: Intercalares 2007[71]

Lisbon City Council election, 2009

Ballot: 11 October 2009
Party Candidate Votes % Seats +/−
PS António Costa 123,372 44.0 9 +3
PSD/CDS–PP/MPT/PPM Pedro Santana Lopes 108,457 38.7 7 +4
CDU Ruben de Carvalho 22,623 8.1 1 –1
BE Luís Fazenda 12,795 4.6 0 –1
Other parties 5,911 2.1 0 ±0
Blank/Invalid ballots 7,152 2.5
Turnout 280,310 53.43 17 ±0
Source: Autárquicas 2009[72]

Lisbon City Council election, 2013

Ballot: 29 September 2013
Party Candidate Votes % Seats +/−
PS António Costa 116,425 50.9 11 +2
PSD/CDS–PP/MPT Fernando Seara 51,156 22.4 4 –3
CDU João Ferreira 22,519 9.9 2 +1
BE João Semedo 10,533 4.6 0 ±0
PPM/PPV/PND José Jorge Andrade 2,814 1.2 0 new
PCTP/MRPP Joana Miranda 2,378 1.0 0 ±0
Other parties 1,838 0.8 0 ±0
Blank/Invalid ballots 15,792 6.9
Turnout 228,682 45.06 17 ±0
Source: Autárquicas 2013[73]

PS Primary election, 2014

Ballot: 28 September 2014
Candidate Votes %
António Costa 120,188 67.8
António José Seguro 55,928 31.5
Blank/Invalid ballots 1,234 0.7
Turnout 177,350 70.71
Source: Resultados[74]

Legislative election, 2015

Ballot: 4 October 2015
Party Candidate Votes % Seats +/−
PàF Pedro Passos Coelho 2,085,465 38.6 107 –25
PS António Costa 1,747,730 32.3 86 +12
BE Catarina Martins 550,945 10.2 19 +11
CDU Jerónimo de Sousa 445,901 8.3 17 +1
PAN André Silva 75,170 1.4 1 +1
PDR Marinho e Pinto 61,920 1.1 0 new
PCTP/MRPP Garcia Pereira 60,045 1.1 0 ±0
Other parties 178,937 3.3 0 ±0
Blank/Invalid ballots 201,979 3.7
Turnout 5,408,092 55.84 230 ±0
Source: Diário da República[75]

Legislative election, 2019

Ballot: 6 October 2019
Party Candidate Votes % Seats +/−
PS António Costa 1,903,687 36.3 108 +22
PSD Rui Rio 1,454,283 27.8 79 –10
BE Catarina Martins 498,549 9.5 19 ±0
CDU Jerónimo de Sousa 332,018 6.3 12 –5
CDS–PP Assunção Cristas 221,094 4.2 5 –13
PAN André Silva 173,931 3.3 4 +3
Chega André Ventura 67,502 1.3 1 new
IL Carlos Guimarães Pinto 67,443 1.3 1 new
Livre Collective leadership 56,940 1.1 1 +1
Other parties 207,162 4.0 0 ±0
Blank/Invalid ballots 254,875 4.9
Turnout 5,237,484 48.60 230 ±0
Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições[76]

Legislative election, 2022

Ballot: 30 January 2022
Party Candidate Votes % Seats +/−
PS António Costa 2,302,601 41.4 120 +12
PSD[b] Rui Rio 1,618,381 29.1 77 –2
Chega André Ventura 399,659 7.2 12 +11
IL João Cotrim Figueiredo 273,687 4.9 8 +7
BE Catarina Martins 244,603 4.4 5 –14
CDU Jerónimo de Sousa 238,920 4.3 6 –6
CDS–PP Rodrigues dos Santos 89,181 1.6 0 –5
PAN Inês Sousa Real 88,152 1.6 1 –3
Livre Rui Tavares 71,232 1.3 1 ±0
Other parties 91,299 1.6 0 ±0
Blank/Invalid ballots 146,824 2.6
Turnout 5,564,539 51.46 230 ±0
Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições[77]

Honours

National honours

Foreign honours

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Second in the list, became the top candidate after the sudden death of António de Sousa Franco, the original top candidate, during the campaign.
  2. ^ Sum of the votes of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) in mainland Portugal and the PSD.CDS – People's Party (CDS–PP) coalitions in Azores and Madeira. The 5 MPs elected in these coalitions are all from the PSD.

References

  1. ^ "António Costa, Assembleia da República".
  2. ^ "As legislaturas da Assembleia da República".
  3. ^ "Leadership". Party of European Socialists. Archived from the original on 18 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Von der Leyen, Costa and Kallas bag EU top jobs". Poltico Europe. 27 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  5. ^ António Costa's Biography on the Portuguese Government's official webpage Archived 8 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine.
  6. ^ a b "Portugal's PM Costa resigns over corruption investigation". Reuters. 7 November 2023. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  7. ^ "Face a buscas e detenções, Marcelo recebeu Costa a pedido deste em Belém". Notícias ao Minuto (in Portuguese). 7 November 2023. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Marcelo dissolve Parlamento. António Costa no Governo até às próximas eleições a 10 de março". Correio da Manhã (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 16 November 2023. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
  9. ^ a b Pinto, Salomé (2 April 2024). "Montenegro sucede a Costa. Ministros tomaram posse" [Montenegro succeeds Costa. Ministers took office]. ECO (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
  10. ^ Then Came A Gandhi Archived 12 November 2014 at the Wayback Machine, outlookindia.com, retrieved 10 September 2015
  11. ^ "'Proud of my roots in Goa': Portugal PM Antonio Costa's Q&A with HT". Hindustan Times. 6 January 2017. Archived from the original on 11 March 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
  12. ^ "Portugal PM Antonio Costa: Goan connection of 'Gandhi of Lisbon' who won polls again". WION. Archived from the original on 13 March 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  13. ^ "António Costa" (PDF). Jornal de Campanha — Socialist Party. August 2015. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 April 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  14. ^ a b c Axel Bugge (4 October 2015), Portuguese Socialist leader Costa candidate for PM Archived 16 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  15. ^ "Se o Governo agir rapidamente, poderá ser este o cargo internacional de António Costa". Expresso. 8 November 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  16. ^ "António Costa - Primeiro-Ministro". Governo de Portugal. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  17. ^ a b "Perfil do deputado". Público. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  18. ^ "António Costa candidato em Loures". RTP Arquivos. 29 July 1993. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  19. ^ "Campanha autárquica de António Costa". RTP Arquivos. 1 October 1993. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  20. ^ "Autárquicas: Costa relembra candidatura a Loures em 1993 para dizer que PS cumpriu o que "faltava cumprir"". Sapo24. 7 September 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  21. ^ "Quando António Costa se zangou com Sampaio". Diário de Notícias. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  22. ^ "LisboaEleicoes Antonio Costa o exnumero dois do Governo que quer governar a capital Perfil". www.jn.pt. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  23. ^ "Rui Rio: Há escutas telefónicas da Casa Pia em que António Costa tenta "interferir na justiça". É verdade?". www.poligrafo.sapo.pt. 6 May 2021. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  24. ^ "6th parliamentary term – António COSTA – MEPs – European Parliament". European Parliament. Archived from the original on 29 May 2023.
  25. ^ Mais de um terço do Executivo de Costa esteve nos governos de Sócrates (Jornal Económico) https://jornaleconomico.sapo.pt/noticias/mais-de-um-terco-do-executivo-de-costa-esteve-nos-governos-de-socrates-722921 Archived 3 January 2022 at the Wayback Machine
  26. ^ a b Agence France-Presse (25 November 2015), Portugal gets Antonio Costa as new PM after election winner only lasted 11 days Archived 24 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine The Guardian.
  27. ^ Andrei Khalip (28 September 2014), Portugal opposition Socialists choose mayor of Lisbon as candidate for PM in next year's election Archived 25 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  28. ^ a b Axel Bugge (1 April 2015), Lisbon Socialist mayor steps down to campaign for Portugal PM Archived 4 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  29. ^ Axel Bugge (18 September 2015), Portugal election race still in dead heat, no majority win: poll Archived 4 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  30. ^ Andrei Khalip (17 September 2015), Portuguese PM and Socialist opponent clash over austerity as election nears Archived 17 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  31. ^ Patricia Kowsmann and Matt Moffett (24 November 2015). "Socialist Leader António Costa Is Named as Portugal's Prime Minister". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 24 November 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  32. ^ Axel Bugge (31 March 2017), As Europe left struggles, Portugal's alliance wins over voters and Brussels Archived 21 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  33. ^ Paul Ames (2 October 2017), Portugal’s Socialists toast ‘biggest ever’ election win Archived 3 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine Politico Europe.
  34. ^ "Portugal and Spain wildfires: Dozens dead and injured". BBC News. 16 October 2017. Archived from the original on 16 October 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  35. ^ Axel Bugge and Andrei Khalip (17 October 2017), Portugal's government faces no-confidence vote over forest fires Archived 27 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  36. ^ Andrei Khalip (13 April 2018), Portugal government targets budget surplus in 2020, irks allies Archived 15 April 2018 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  37. ^ Andrei Khalip and Mark Heinrich (20 February 2019), Portuguese PM withstands no confidence motion in parliament Archived 26 February 2019 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  38. ^ Andrei Khalip (29 August 2019), Portugal PM rules out coalition government after October election Archived 4 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine Reuters.
  39. ^ "Costa quer salário mínimo nos 750 euros em 2023". Público (in European Portuguese). 26 October 2019. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  40. ^ "Apertos de mão e papéis assinados. A tomada de posse do Governo em imagens". TSF (in European Portuguese). 26 October 2019. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  41. ^ "Orçamento do Estado para 2020 aprovado com votos do PS e abstenção da esquerda". ECO (in European Portuguese). 6 February 2020. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
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Political offices
Vacant
Title last held by
António Couto dos Santos
Minister of Parliamentary Affairs
1997–1999
Vacant
Title next held by
Luís Marques Mendes
Preceded by
José Vera Jardim
Minister of Justice
1999–2002
Succeeded by
Celeste Cardona
Preceded by
Daniel Sanches
Minister of Internal Administration
2005–2007
Succeeded by
Preceded by Mayor of Lisbon
2007–2015
Succeeded by
Preceded by Leader of the Opposition
2014–2015
Succeeded by
Preceded by Prime Minister of Portugal
2015–2024
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by President of the Parliamentary Group
of the Socialist Party

2002–2004
Succeeded by
Preceded by Secretary-General of the Socialist Party
2014–2024
Succeeded by
Academic offices
Preceded by Invocation Speaker of the College of Europe
2017
Succeeded by