Luís Montenegro

Luís Montenegro
Born	Luís Filipe Montenegro Cardoso de Morais Esteves 16 2, 1973
Birthplace	Porto, Portugal
Nationality	Portuguese
Occupation	Politician, lawyer
Known for	Prime Minister of Portugal, President of the Social Democratic Party
Children	2

Luís Filipe Montenegro Cardoso de Morais Esteves (born 16 February 1973) is a Portuguese politician and lawyer who has served as the Prime Minister of Portugal since April 2024. A member of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) since 1991, Montenegro rose through the ranks of centre-right Portuguese politics over the course of three decades, beginning with local government in Espinho and eventually reaching the country's highest executive office. He represented the Aveiro District in the Assembly of the Republic from 2002 to 2018 and served as president of the PSD's parliamentary group from 2011 to 2017, a period that coincided with the austerity-era government of Pedro Passos Coelho. After an unsuccessful bid for the party leadership in 2020, Montenegro won the PSD presidency in 2022 and subsequently led the centre-right Democratic Alliance coalition to a plurality victory in the 2024 Portuguese legislative election. Appointed prime minister by President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, he first led the XXIV Constitutional Government, a coalition minority government. After that government fell following a failed vote of confidence in March 2025, the Democratic Alliance increased its seat count in the ensuing snap election, and Montenegro formed the XXV Constitutional Government.

Early Life

Luís Filipe Montenegro Cardoso de Morais Esteves was born on 16 February 1973 in Porto, Portugal. He grew up in the northern Portuguese coastal city of Espinho, in the Aveiro District, a region that would later serve as his political base for much of his career.

Within his family he was known as "Filipe," while at school he acquired the nickname "Ervilha" (meaning "pea"), reflecting the more informal and personal dimensions of his upbringing before he entered public life. Montenegro joined the Social Democratic Party in 1991, at the age of eighteen, beginning a long association with the centre-right party that would define his political career.

His early political involvement was centred on local government in Espinho. He became a member of the Espinho City Council on 14 December 1997, a position he held for over a decade until 11 October 2009. This experience in municipal politics provided Montenegro with a foundation in governance and public administration that preceded his transition to national-level politics. Following his tenure on the city council, he served as President of the Espinho Municipal Assembly from 11 October 2009 to 29 September 2013, further consolidating his standing as a prominent local figure within the PSD's northern stronghold.

Education

Montenegro studied law at the Catholic University of Portugal, one of the country's leading private universities. His legal training informed his subsequent career both as a practising lawyer and as a parliamentarian. After departing the Assembly of the Republic in 2018, Montenegro returned to the practice of law, drawing on the professional qualifications he had obtained at the Catholic University.

Career

Parliamentary Career (2002–2018)

Montenegro was first elected to the Assembly of the Republic on 4 April 2002, representing the Aveiro District constituency. He would continue to serve as a member of parliament for the Aveiro constituency continuously until 5 April 2018, a span of sixteen years that made him one of the more experienced parliamentarians within the PSD.

During his time in the Assembly, Montenegro became known as a formidable debater and parliamentary tactician. His profile rose significantly when he was elected president of the PSD's parliamentary group on 29 June 2011, receiving 86 percent of the votes from his fellow PSD deputies. He succeeded Miguel Macedo in the role. This appointment placed Montenegro at the centre of the PSD's legislative operations during a critical period in Portuguese history — the government of Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho, which took office amid the European debt crisis and the international financial bailout of Portugal by the Troika.

As the PSD's parliamentary leader during the Troika era, Montenegro served as one of the most visible faces of the government's legislative agenda, which included significant austerity measures. He was described as a "tribune" — a skilled parliamentary orator and combative political figure who defended the Passos Coelho government's programme in the Assembly. He held the role of parliamentary group president until 19 July 2017, when he was succeeded by Hugo Soares.

In February 2018, Montenegro departed the Assembly of the Republic. His exit was notable for the warnings he directed at Rui Rio, who had recently been elected president of the PSD. Montenegro's departure signalled a growing rift within the party between Rio's more centrist, conciliatory approach and the more combative posture favoured by Montenegro and his allies.

2020 PSD Leadership Election

After leaving parliament, Montenegro returned to the practice of law but remained engaged in PSD internal politics. By late 2019 and early 2020, discontent with Rui Rio's leadership had grown among a significant faction of the party, and Montenegro emerged as the principal challenger to Rio.

The 2020 PSD leadership election went to a second round, reflecting the competitive nature of the contest. In the final ballot, Rui Rio prevailed with 53.2 percent of the vote, defeating Montenegro by a margin of approximately 2,071 votes. Although defeated, Montenegro's strong showing demonstrated the depth of his support within the party and positioned him as a credible future contender for the leadership.

During the internal party contest, the issue of Freemasonry's alleged influence within the PSD became a subject of public discussion. Rio had publicly stated that he believed Freemasonry attempted to influence many aspects of the country's affairs. Montenegro publicly denied any association with Freemasonry, stating: "I am not a Mason nor do I have any connection to Masonry."

Election as PSD President (2022)

Following the PSD's significant defeat in the 2022 Portuguese legislative election, in which the Socialist Party won an absolute majority, Rui Rio stepped down as party leader. In March 2022, Montenegro announced his candidacy for the PSD presidency.

The direct election for the PSD presidency took place in May 2022, with Montenegro facing Jorge Moreira da Silva, a former minister and diplomat. Montenegro won decisively with 72.47 percent of the vote, securing a commanding mandate to lead the party. He formally assumed the presidency of the PSD on 1 July 2022, becoming the party's 19th president.

As party leader, Montenegro also assumed the role of Leader of the Opposition, a position he held from 1 July 2022 until his appointment as prime minister on 2 April 2024. During this period, the PSD operated as the main opposition to the Socialist-led government of Prime Minister António Costa.

Formation of the Democratic Alliance and 2024 Election

In a strategic move to consolidate the centre-right vote, Montenegro negotiated a pre-electoral alliance between the PSD and the CDS – People's Party (CDS-PP), forming the Democratic Alliance (AD) — a coalition that deliberately evoked the historical alliance of the same name that had governed Portugal in the early 1980s. The alliance was formally sealed in January 2024.

As the leader of the Democratic Alliance, Montenegro articulated a centre-right economic platform. In a December 2023 interview with Reuters, he expressed support for the full privatisation of TAP Air Portugal, the state-owned airline, signalling an orientation toward market liberalisation and reduced state intervention in the economy.

The 2024 Portuguese legislative election was held on 10 March 2024, following the resignation of Prime Minister António Costa in November 2023 amid a corruption investigation (in which Costa was not ultimately charged). The Democratic Alliance won a plurality of seats in the Assembly of the Republic, though it fell short of a majority. Montenegro himself was elected to the Assembly from the Lisbon constituency, briefly serving as a deputy from 26 March 2024 before being appointed prime minister.

Prime Minister of Portugal

XXIV Constitutional Government (2024–2025)

On 2 April 2024, Montenegro was appointed Prime Minister of Portugal by President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, succeeding António Costa and forming the XXIV Constitutional Government. The government was a coalition minority government composed of PSD and CDS-PP members operating under the Democratic Alliance banner. Governing without a parliamentary majority, the administration depended on the tacit support or abstention of other parties to pass legislation.

Montenegro's government pursued a centre-right policy agenda. The question of TAP Air Portugal's privatisation remained a prominent element of economic policy discussions, consistent with the positions Montenegro had outlined during the campaign.

However, the minority government faced significant political challenges. In March 2025, the government lost a vote of confidence in the Assembly of the Republic. The vote was linked to an alleged conflict of interest affair that had generated political controversy. The loss of the confidence vote precipitated the fall of the XXIV Constitutional Government and necessitated the calling of snap elections.

2025 Snap Election and XXV Constitutional Government

In the snap election that followed the collapse of the XXIV Constitutional Government, the Democratic Alliance increased its plurality of seats in the Assembly of the Republic, a result that was interpreted as a strengthening of Montenegro's political mandate despite the circumstances that had led to the fall of his previous government.

Following the election results, Montenegro was again appointed prime minister by the president, this time forming the XXV Constitutional Government. The new government continued to be based on the Democratic Alliance coalition of PSD and CDS-PP.

Personal Life

Luís Montenegro is based in the official prime ministerial residence, the Palacete de São Bento in Lisbon. He has two children. He has maintained a relatively private personal life compared to many Portuguese politicians, though some biographical details have been reported. Within his family, he has been known by his middle name Filipe rather than Luís.

Before entering politics at the national level and after his departure from the Assembly of the Republic in 2018, Montenegro worked as a practising lawyer, drawing on his legal education from the Catholic University of Portugal.

Montenegro's political identity has been closely associated with the northern Portuguese coastal region of Espinho and the broader Aveiro District, where he built his political career at both the local and national levels over a period of more than two decades.

Recognition

Montenegro's election as president of the PSD in 2022 with 72.47 percent of the vote represented one of the more decisive leadership mandates in the party's recent history. He was characterised by the newspaper Público as a "tribune of the Troika era" in recognition of his prominent role as parliamentary group leader during the austerity period of 2011–2017.

His success in forging the Democratic Alliance — reviving a historical coalition brand from the 1980s — and leading it to victory in the 2024 legislative election was noted as a significant strategic achievement in the context of an increasingly fragmented Portuguese political landscape. The subsequent increase in the coalition's seat count in the 2025 snap election further consolidated his position as the leading figure on the Portuguese centre-right.

Montenegro's career trajectory — from local councillor in Espinho to prime minister of Portugal — has spanned nearly three decades of continuous involvement in PSD politics, making him one of the party's most enduring figures of his generation.

Legacy

As a political figure whose career spans from the late 1990s to the present, Montenegro's legacy is still being shaped by his ongoing tenure as prime minister. Several elements of his political career have already left a mark on Portuguese politics.

His period as parliamentary group leader during the Troika years (2011–2017) placed him at the centre of one of the most consequential periods in contemporary Portuguese political history. The austerity measures implemented during that era remain a subject of significant debate in Portuguese society, and Montenegro's role as the parliamentary face of the Passos Coelho government's legislative agenda is an integral part of that historical record.

The revival of the Democratic Alliance as a pre-electoral coalition between the PSD and CDS-PP represented a notable development in Portuguese centre-right politics. By consolidating the two main centre-right parties under a single electoral banner, Montenegro addressed the problem of vote fragmentation that had weakened the right's electoral prospects in previous elections.

Montenegro's path to the party leadership — which included a defeat in 2020 followed by a decisive victory in 2022 — has been cited as an example of political persistence within the PSD's internal culture. His ability to rebuild support within the party after the 2020 loss and to secure a commanding mandate two years later demonstrated resilience as a political operator.

As prime minister leading a minority government in an era of increasing political fragmentation in Portugal — with the rise of parties such as Chega on the right and new formations on the left — Montenegro's capacity to maintain stable governance without a parliamentary majority remains a central challenge and a defining feature of his political tenure.