João Fernando Cotrim de Figueiredo (born 24 June 1961) is a Portuguese businessman and
Liberal Initiative
The Liberal Initiative ( pt, Iniciativa Liberal, , IL) is a liberal political party in Portugal currently led by João Cotrim de Figueiredo. In 2019, its debut year at the Portuguese legislative elections, the party won one seat in the Portugu ...
politician. He was the party's first member of the
Assembly of the Republic, for the
Lisbon District, in
October 2019. He was the leader of the party between October 2019 and January 2023, during which the party won eight seats in the
2022 election.
Education and career
Cotrim de Figueiredo grew up in
Lisbon
Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...
, where he sold
clothes hangers door-to-door for a company established by his great-grandfather. He attended the
German School Lisbon before studying Economics at the
London School of Economics
, mottoeng = To understand the causes of things
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £240.8 million (2021)
, budget = £391.1 millio ...
, and then obtained a Masters in Business Administration from the
NOVA University Lisbon
NOVA University Lisbon ( pt, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, ), or just NOVA, is a Portuguese public university whose rectorate is located in Campolide, Lisbon. Founded in 1973, it is the newest of the public universities in the Portuguese capital ...
.
He worked in executive positions at
Compal, Nutricafés, Privado Holding and
TVI. In 2015 he was elected vice president of the
European Travel Commission
The European Travel Commission (ETC) is an association of National Tourism Organisations (NTOs) based in Brussels. It was created in 1948 to promote Europe as a tourist destination to long-haul markets outside of Europe, originally the US and la ...
, while also being president of the board at Turismo de Portugal.
[
]
Politics
In July 2019, Cotrim de Figueiredo was chosen to head the Liberal Initiative's list in Lisbon District for the October legislative elections. He became the party's only Assembly member, in their first elections.
After the resignation of Carlos Guimarães Pinto
Carlos Manuel Guimarães Oliveira Pinto, better known as Carlos Guimarães Pinto (born in Espinho, Portugal, in 1983), is a Portuguese economist, author, university professor, think tank executive, blogger and politician. A prominent member of t ...
, Cotrim de Figueiredo ran for leader of the party in December 2019 and was elected with 96% of the votes.
In the snap election in January 2022, the Liberal Initiative received 5% of all votes, rising from one seat to eight and forming a parliamentary group. Cotrim de Figueiredo said that the group would be a firm opposition to socialism.
On 22 January 2023, Cotrim de Figueiredo was succeeded as leader of the Liberal Initiative by Rui Rocha, whom he had endorsed.
See also
* Liberalism in Portugal
References
External links
João Cotrim de Figueiredo
at Assembly of the Republic (in Portuguese)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cotrim de Figueiredo, Joao
1961 births
Living people
Alumni of the London School of Economics
NOVA University Lisbon alumni
20th-century Portuguese economists
Businesspeople from Lisbon
Members of the Assembly of the Republic (Portugal)
Liberal Initiative people
21st-century Portuguese economists