José Luís Carneiro addressed journalists early this morning at Largo do Rato after a roughly four-hour meeting of the PS National Political Commission. The meeting aimed to decide on abstaining from the State Budget for 2026 (OE2026) and to analyze the results of Sunday’s local elections.
The PS leader noted that “different interpretations are always possible” as “there are 30 ways to look at the results of local elections.”
He emphasized, however, that both the PS parliamentary group and the National Political Commission were unanimous regarding “the positive results of the Socialist Party considering the entire national context,” as well as the fact that the party won several local elections.
“We had the electoral tools from the government’s side and were still the party that had to replace the most mayors, with 50 mayors, about 20 more than our main competitors,” he added.
From Carneiro’s perspective, as the PS Secretary-General, it is his duty “to highlight the merit, the results, the achievements, and the good things that happened in these elections.”
“Naturally, we would have liked to have additional objectives, but it is obvious that it is the Secretary-General’s role to boost morale and encourage his party’s members, and that is what the Secretary-General does, with justification,” he stated.
Among the arguments is the fact that the PS garnered 1.8 million votes, won nine district capitals, and the majority of the councils in the Lisbon metropolitan area.
“This shows that PS is also competitive among urban voters, and therefore the Socialist Party has reasons to be confident as the main political alternative to the AD, and it will assert itself as a national political alternative from this position,” he emphasized.
Regarding those with different views — such as his predecessor, Pedro Nuno Santos, who issued warnings on social media on Monday — Carneiro said he sees these positions “very naturally.”
“Among the optimists and pessimists, I have said that I am an optimistic realist,” he emphasized.
In Sunday’s local elections, PS ceased to be the leading local force in Portugal, retaining the presidency in 128 councils, two of which are in coalition, compared to 149 councils in 2021, one of which was in coalition.
Thus, the socialists lose the leadership of ANMP to PSD and failed again in their goal to win Lisbon and Porto.
