The President of the Lisbon City Council, Carlos Moedas, is set to run for re-election, with a presentation scheduled for July, albeit without a fixed date.
“I still have a lot to offer the people of Lisbon,” the mayor justified, adding that it would be impossible to fulfill all the commitments he made when he first won the council in a single term.
Moedas declared, “I feel the social and political responsibility to continue the project of vision and enhancement of Lisbon that I committed to. Because in just four years, no one can solve the issues created by a socialist executive over 14 years.”
Emphasizing the significant work done over the last four years, Moedas stressed that the current moment requires stability for implementation rather than “radical adventurism.”
However, Carlos Moedas has not yet finalized the spots on the lists with CDS and Iniciativa Liberal, and therefore, further names to join his campaign have not been disclosed.
It should be noted that Carlos Moedas ousted the Socialist Party from the council in 2021, securing victory with 34.25% of the votes. The social democrat led a coalition called Novos Tempos, assuming office after the socialists governed the Lisbon council for 14 years.
The incumbent council president, Fernando Medina, finished in second place, despite numerous polls predicting his victory.
Currently, there are seven councilors from Moedas’ coalition in the council: four from the Social Democratic Party and three from the CDS.
Moedas breaks the silence, but Alexandra Leitão is in the race for the Socialist Party to “retake governing Lisbon”.
In the upcoming elections on October 12, the Socialist Party has chosen former parliamentary leader Alexandra Leitão, with the announcement made in January.
The announcement was made by the then Secretary-General of the Socialist Party, Pedro Nuno Santos, who explained the decision, stating, “The capital is very important, Lisbon is being very poorly governed by the PSD and the current council president. Therefore, the Socialist Party had to make its greatest bet, and Alexandra Leitão is the parliamentary leader of the Socialist Party and one of the most important figures in the party, after myself and the socialist president.”
According to the socialist leader, succeeded by José Luís Carneiro after the defeat in the legislative elections, Alexandra Leitão’s choice signals the “strong investment” the Socialist Party is making in the capital.
Asked whether the choice of the parliamentary leader aimed to unite the left, Santos assured that it was “not related to that” but rather “to the profile she has built in recent years in Portugal, offering us the possibility to contest the Lisbon council. I have the conviction that Alexandra Leitão is the right choice for the Socialist Party to govern the Lisbon council again.”
The latest municipal elections took place on September 26, 2021; in 2017 on October 1, in 2013 on September 29, in 2009 on October 11, and in 2005 on October 9. Previously, municipal elections were held in December.
[Updated at 23:49]
