| Election Name: | 2020 Social Democratic Party leadership election |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2018 Portuguese Social Democratic Party leadership election |
| Previous Year: | 2018 |
| Next Election: | 2021 Portuguese Social Democratic Party leadership election |
| Next Year: | 2021 |
| 1Blank: | Popular vote |
| 2Blank: | Share |
| 3Blank: | Popular vote |
| 4Blank: | Share |
| Candidate1: | Rui Rio |
| Colour1: | FF9900 |
| 1Data1: | 15,546 |
| 2Data1: | 49.0% |
| 3Data1: | 17,157 |
| 4Data1: | 53.2% |
| Candidate2: | Luís Montenegro |
| Colour2: | FF9900 |
| 1Data2: | 13,136 |
| 2Data2: | 41.4% |
| 3Data2: | 15,086 |
| 4Data2: | 46.8% |
| Candidate3: | Miguel Pinto Luz |
| Colour3: | FF9900 |
| 1Data3: | 3,030 |
| 2Data3: | 9.6% |
| 3Data3: | Eliminated |
| Leader | |
| Before Election: | Rui Rio |
| After Election: | Rui Rio |
The 2020 Portuguese Social Democratic Party leadership election was held on 11 and 18 January 2020. As no candidate received a majority of all valid votes on the first round, held on 11 January 2020, a second round took place one week later, 18 January, between the two candidates with the highest number of votes in the first round. This was the first time that a Social Democratic Party leadership election was contested on a second ballot.
In the first round of the election, incumbent party leader Rui Rio finished in first place with a relative majority of 49.0% of all valid votes cast, followed by contesters Luís Montenegro, who received 41.4% of the vote, and Miguel Pinto Luz, who won 9.6% of the vote.[1] As no candidate managed to reach the required percentage of the vote to win outright in the first round, a run-off election took place between the two candidates with the most votes in the first round: Rio and Montenegro. Rui Rio won the second round with 53.2% of the vote and was thus re-elected President of the party and stayed on as Leader of the Opposition.[2]
| Name | Born | Experience | Announcement date | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Luís Montenegro | (age 46) Porto | Leader of the Social Democratic Parliamentary Caucus (2011–2017) Member of Parliament for Aveiro (2002–2017) | 9 October 2019 | [3] | |
Miguel Pinto Luz | (age 42) Lisbon | Deputy Mayor of Cascais (2017–2024) Secretary of State for Infrastructure, Transportation, and Communications, XX Constitutional Government (2015) | 18 October 2019 | [4] [5] | |
Rui Rio | (age 62) Porto | President of the Social Democratic Party (2018–2022) Leader of the Opposition (2018–2022) Member of Parliament for Porto (2019–2022) Mayor of Porto (2001–2013) Member of Parliament for Porto (1991–2002) | 21 October 2019 | [6] |
| Candidate | 1st Round 11 January 2020 | 2nd Round 18 January 2020 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | |||
| Rui Rio | 15,546 | 49.02 | 17,157 | 53.21 | ||
| Luís Montenegro | 13,136 | 41.42 | 15,086 | 46.79 | ||
| Miguel Pinto Luz | 3,030 | 9.55 | colspan="2" | |||
| Total | 31,712 | 32,243 | ||||
| Valid votes | 31,712 | 98.85 | 32,243 | 98.96 | ||
| Invalid and blank ballots | 369 | 1.15 | 339 | 1.04 | ||
| Votes cast / turnout | 32,081 | 79.01 | 32,582 | 80.20 | ||
| Registered voters | 40,604 | 40,628 | ||||
| Sources: 1st Round results, 2nd Round results | ||||||