List of presidents of Portugal facts for kids

• Top left: Teofilo Braga was the first leader of the Republic.
• Top right: Óscar Carmona served the longest as president.
• Bottom left: António Ramalho Eanes was the first president chosen by the people in a democracy.
• Bottom right: Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is the current president.

This article lists all the people who have been the leader of Portugal since 1910. That year, a big change happened: Portugal stopped being a kingdom and became a republic. This means the country is led by a president, not a king or queen.

Some of these leaders were officially called "President of Portugal." Others, like Teófilo Braga, were leaders of the government and acted as the head of state, even if they didn't have the title "President" right away. This list includes everyone who truly led the country since the republic began.

How Presidents Are Chosen

When we count presidents, we look at how many different people have held the job. For example, Jorge Sampaio was president for two terms in a row. He is counted as one president (the 19th), not two.

However, if someone serves as president, leaves the job, and then comes back later, they are counted twice. Bernardino Machado did this. He is counted as the 3rd and the 8th president. This is why there are 20 presidencies listed, but only 19 different people have been president.

Since 1976, the president of Portugal is chosen by the people in an election. They serve for five years. A president can be re-elected for a second term right after their first. After serving two terms in a row, they must wait five years before they can run for president again.

The official home of the Portuguese president is the Belém Palace.

The current president of Portugal is Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. He won the election in 2016 and was re-elected in 2021.

Meet the Presidents

The colors next to each president's name show which political group or party they belonged to.

             Republican Party
             Democratic Party
             National Republican/Sidonist
             Evolutionist Party/Republican Liberal
             National Union/Popular National Action
             Democratic Renewal
             Socialist Party
             Social Democratic Party
             No party/Independent

First Republic (1910–1926)

No.	Picture	President (Born–Died)	Elected	Time in Office		Political Party	Ref.
Leader of the Provisional Government (1910–1911)
-		Teófilo Braga (1843–1924)	—	5 October 1910	24 August 1911	Republican
Presidents of the Republic (1911–1926)
1		Manuel de Arriaga (1840–1917)	1911	24 August 1911	26 May 1915	Republican later Democratic Republican
2		Teófilo Braga (1843–1924)	May 1915	29 May 1915	5 October 1915	Democratic Republican
3		Bernardino Machado (1851–1944)	August 1915	5 October 1915	5 December 1917	Democratic Republican
-		Government (Leader of State) President: Sidónio Pais	—	12 December 1917	28 April 1918	–
4		Sidónio Pais (1872–1918)	April 1918	28 April 1918	14 December 1918	National Republican or "Sidonist"
-		Government (Leader of State) President: João do Canto e Castro	—	14 December 1918	16 December 1918	–
5		João do Canto e Castro (1862–1934)	December 1918	16 December 1918	5 October 1919	National Republican or "Sidonist"
6		António José de Almeida (1866–1929)	1919	5 October 1919	5 October 1923	Evolutionist Party later Republican Liberal
7		Manuel Teixeira Gomes (1860–1941)	1923	5 October 1923	11 December 1925	Democratic Republican
8		Bernardino Machado (1851–1944) 2nd time	1925	11 December 1925	31 May 1926	Democratic Republican

Second Republic (1926–1974)

No.	Picture	President (Born–Died)	Elected	Time in Office		Political Party	Ref.
National Dictatorship (1926–1932)
9		José Mendes Cabeçadas (1883–1965)	—	31 May 1926	17 June 1926	Military officer
-		Government (Leader of State) President: Manuel Gomes da Costa	—	17 June 1926	29 June 1926	–
10		Manuel Gomes da Costa (1863–1929)	—	29 June 1926	9 July 1926	Military officer
-		Government (Leader of State) President: Óscar Carmona	—	9 July 1926	16 November 1926	–
11		Óscar Carmona (1869–1951)	—	16 November 1926	15 April 1928	Military officer
	New State (1932–1974)
		Óscar Carmona (1869–1951)	1928	15 April 1928	26 April 1935	Military officer from 1932 National Union
			1935	26 April 1935	15 April 1942
			1942	15 April 1942	20 April 1949
			1949	20 April 1949	18 April 1951
-		António de Oliveira Salazar (1889–1970) (temporary)	—	18 April 1951	21 July 1951	National Union
12		Francisco Craveiro Lopes (1894–1964)	1951	21 July 1951	9 August 1958	National Union
13		Américo Tomás (1894–1987)	1958	9 August 1958	9 August 1965	National Union from 1970 People's National Action
			1965	9 August 1965	9 August 1972
			1972	9 August 1972	25 April 1974

Third Republic (1974–Present)

No.	Picture	President (Born–Died)	Elected	Time in Office		Political Party	Ref.
Leaders after the Carnation Revolution (1974–1976)
-	National Salvation Junta President: António de Spínola		—	25 April 1974	15 May 1974	–
14		António de Spínola (1910–1996)	—	15 May 1974	30 September 1974	Military officer
15		Francisco da Costa Gomes (1914–2001)	—	30 September 1974	14 July 1976	Military officer
Presidents Elected by the People (1976–Present)
16		António Ramalho Eanes (born 1935)	1976	14 July 1976	14 January 1981	until 1985 Military officer
			1980	14 January 1981	9 March 1986	from 1985 Democratic Renewal
17		Mário Soares (1924–2017)	1986	9 March 1986	9 March 1991	Socialist
			1991	9 March 1991	9 March 1996
18		Jorge Sampaio (1939–2021)	1996	9 March 1996	9 March 2001	Socialist
			2001	9 March 2001	9 March 2006
19		Aníbal Cavaco Silva (born 1939)	2006	9 March 2006	9 March 2011	Social Democratic
			2011	9 March 2011	9 March 2016
20		Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa (born 1948)	2016	9 March 2016	9 March 2021	Social Democratic
			2021	9 March 2021	Current President

• Left office early:

• Assassinated: The president was killed.
• Died in office: The president passed away while still in power.
• Resigned: The president chose to leave the job.
• Forced to resign: The president had to leave because of a sudden change in power.

Timeline of Presidents

Presidents of Portugal (1910–Present)

Where Presidents Were Born

Presidents by Time in Office

This table shows how long each president served, from the longest to the shortest.

See Also

• President of Portugal
• First Lady of Portugal
• List of heads of state of Portugal
• List of prime ministers of Portugal
• List of Portuguese monarchs
• Prime Minister of Portugal
• Politics of Portugal
• History of Portugal
  • History of Portugal (1910–1926)
  • History of Portugal (1926–1932)
  • History of Portugal (1932–1974)
  • History of Portugal (1974–1986)
  • History of Portugal (1986–2000)
  • History of Portugal (2000–present)
• Timeline of Portuguese history