List of presidents of Portugal facts for kids

• Top left: Teófilo Braga was the first leader after the Republic began.
• Top right: Óscar Carmona served the longest as head of state.
• 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 page lists all the leaders who have served as the President of Portugal. Portugal became a republic on October 5, 1910. Since then, 20 different people have held the important role of head of state.

Some of these leaders were officially sworn in as President. Others, like Teófilo Braga, led the country as head of state without the official title of President. This happened right after the republic was formed. Other leaders, such as Sidónio Pais and Óscar Carmona, also held the top position, often combining the roles of head of state and head of government.

This list helps us understand the history of leadership in Portugal.

How Presidents Are Chosen and Their Time in Office

Understanding Presidential Terms

The numbers next to each president show their time in office. If a president serves two terms in a row, like Jorge Sampaio, they are counted as one president. For example, he was the 19th president, not the 19th and 20th.

Teófilo Braga was the first leader of the temporary government. He is not counted as the first official president. However, he later became the second president after Manuel de Arriaga stepped down.

Some presidents, like Bernardino Machado, served two terms that were not in a row. He is counted as both the third and the eighth president. This is why the list has 20 presidencies but only 19 different people.

Rules for Being President Today

Since 1976, Portugal has had a special set of rules called the Constitution of Portugal. These rules were made after the Carnation Revolution in 1974.

A president is elected for five years. They can run for a second term right after their first. There is no limit to how many terms a president can serve in total. However, if someone serves two terms in a row, they must wait five years before running again.

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

Portugal's Current President

The current President of Portugal is Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. He won the election in 2016 and was re-elected in 2021. He is a very popular leader.

Leaders of Portugal: A Historical Look

Understanding the Colors and Roles

The colors in the tables below show the political group each president belonged to.

             Republican Party
             Democratic Party
             National Republican/Sidonist Party
             Evolutionist Party/Republican Liberal Party
             National Union/Popular National Action
             Democratic Renewal Party
             Socialist Party
             Social Democratic Party
             No Party      Temporary Leader

The First Republic (1910–1926)

This period began when Portugal became a republic.

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

The Second Republic (1926–1974)

This era included a period of military rule and a new state system.

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

The Third Republic (1974–Present)

This period began after the Carnation Revolution and continues today.

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

• Left office early:

Assassinated: The president was killed while in office.

Died in office of natural causes: The president passed away from natural reasons.

Resigned: The president chose to step down from their position.

Forced to resign due to a coup d'état: The president was made to leave office because of a sudden, forceful change in government.

Future President-elect

No.	Picture	President-elect (Born–Died)	Elected	Time in Office	Political Party	Ref.
21		António José Seguro (born 1962)	2026	To be sworn in on 9 March 2026	Socialist

Timeline of Portuguese Presidents

Timeline of Presidents of Portugal (1910–present)

Where Portuguese Presidents Were Born

Presidents by Length of Time in Office

This table shows which presidents served the longest in Portugal.

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