Aníbal António Cavaco Silva (; born 15 July 1939) is a Portuguese

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served as the 19th

president of Portugal The president of Portugal, officially the president of the Portuguese Republic (, ), is the head of state and highest office of Portugal. The powers, functions and duties of prior presidential offices, and their relation with the prime minister ...

, from 9 March 2006 to 9 March 2016, and as

prime minister of Portugal The prime minister of Portugal (; ) is the head of government of Portugal. As head of government, the prime minister coordinates the actions of ministers, represents the Government of Portugal to the other bodies of state, is accountable to Ass ...

, from 6 November 1985 to 25 October 1995. His 10-year tenure was the longest of any prime minister since Salazar, and the longest for a freely elected prime minister in Portugal's republican history. He was the first Portuguese prime minister to win an absolute parliamentary majority under the current constitutional system (dating to 1974). He is most recognized for guiding Portugal into the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

Early life and career

Aníbal António Cavaco Silva was born in Boliqueime,

Loulé Loulé () is a city and Concelho, municipality in the region of Algarve, Faro District, district of Faro, Portugal. In 2021, the population of the entire municipality was 72,373 inhabitants, in an area of approximately . The municipality has two p ...

Algarve The Algarve (, , ) is the southernmost NUTS statistical regions of Portugal, NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities (concelho, ''concelhos'' or ''município ...

. He was initially an undistinguished student. As a 12-year-old, he failed the 3rd grade of the Commercial School, and his grandfather put him working on the farm as a punishment. After returning to school, Cavaco Silva went on to become an accomplished student. Cavaco Silva then went to

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

, where he took a

vocational education Vocational education is education that prepares people for a skilled craft. Vocational education can also be seen as that type of education given to an individual to prepare that individual to be gainfully employed or self employed with req ...

course in accounting from ''Instituto Comercial de Lisboa'' (''Instituto Superior de Contabilidade e Administração de Lisboa'' (ISCAL), today) in 1959. In parallel, he was admitted for

university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

education at the ''Instituto Superior de Ciências Económicas e Financeiras de Lisboa (ISCEF)'' of the

Technical University of Lisbon The Technical University of Lisbon (UTL; , ) was a Portuguese public university. It was created in 1930 in Lisbon, as a confederation of preexisting schools, and comprised the faculties and institutes of veterinary medicine; agricultural scienc ...

(UTL) (currently the ''Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão (ISEG)'' of the University of Lisbon), and obtained in 1964, with distinction, a degree in

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

and

finance Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...

(he scored a mark of 16 out of 20). While studying in Lisbon, Cavaco Silva was an athlete of CDUL athletics department from 1958 to 1963. Between 1963 and 1964, he was drafted into the Portuguese Army Artillery for compulsory 11-month military service, serving in a battalion in

Lourenço Marques Maputo () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088,449 (as of 2017) distributed ov ...

Portuguese Mozambique Portuguese Mozambique () or Portuguese East Africa () were the common terms by which Mozambique was designated during the period in which it was a Portuguese Empire, Portuguese overseas province. Portuguese Mozambique originally constituted a str ...

. Cavaco Silva studied a graduate course at the

University of York The University of York (abbreviated as or ''York'' for Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a public Collegiate university, collegiate research university in York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thir ...

in England. Returning to Portugal, he took up a post as assistant professor in ISCEF (1974), professor at the

Catholic University of Portugal The Catholic University of Portugal ( Portuguese: ''Universidade Católica Portuguesa'', pronounced nivɨɾsiˈðad(ɨ) kɐˈtɔlikɐ puɾtuˈɣezɐ, also referred to as Católica or UCP for short, is a concordat university (non-state-run unive ...

(1975), extraordinary professor at the

New University of Lisbon NOVA University Lisbon (, ), 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 city, earning its name as the " ...

(1979) and finally director of the Office of Studies of the Bank of Portugal. Cavaco Silva has published several academic works in economics, including in subfields like

monetary policy Monetary policy is the policy adopted by the monetary authority of a nation to affect monetary and other financial conditions to accomplish broader objectives like high employment and price stability (normally interpreted as a low and stable rat ...

and

monetary union A currency union (also known as monetary union) is an intergovernmental agreement that involves two or more states sharing the same currency. These states may not necessarily have any further integration (such as an economic and monetary union ...

s. He received an Honorary Doctorate from Scotland's

Heriot-Watt University Heriot-Watt University () is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1821 as the School of Arts of Edinburgh, the world's first mechanics' institute, and was subsequently granted university status by roya ...

in 2009.

Political career

Early years

Cavaco Silva joined the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

in 1974 and became the party leader in 1985.

Prime minister

The 1985 legislative election was complicated by the arrival of a new political party, the Democratic Renewal Party (PRD), which had been formed by the supporters of the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

, António Ramalho Eanes. In the 250-member Assembly of the Republic, the nation's legislature, the PRD won 45 seats – at the expense of every party except Cavaco Silva's PSD. Despite winning less than 30 per cent of the popular vote, the PSD was the only traditional political party not to suffer substantial losses. Its 88 seats, in fact, represented a gain of 13 over the previous election. Accordingly, Cavaco Silva became prime minister on 6 November 1985. Cavaco Silva headed a minority government. On most issues, his Social Democrats could rely on the 22 votes of the Social and Democratic Center Party (CDS), but the two parties' combined 110 votes fell 16 short of a parliamentary majority. The

Socialists Socialism is an economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes the economic, political, and socia ...

and

Communists Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, d ...

held 57 and 38 seats respectively; Cavaco Silva could govern if the 45 members of the PRD, who held the balance of power, abstained. According to a contemporary report in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', Cavaco Silva's first government presided over an "economic boom". The article described him as "pro-American" and committed to the

European Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisbo ...

Reagan and Cavaco Silva in the Oval Office 1988-02-24

In 1987, the PRD withdrew its tacit support, and a parliamentary vote of no confidence forced President

Mário Soares Mário Alberto Nobre Lopes Soares (; 7 December 1924 – 7 January 2017) was a Portugal, Portuguese politician, who served as prime minister of Portugal from 1976 to 1978 and from 1983 to 1985, and subsequently as the List of Presidents of P ...

to call an early election. Cavaco Silva's Social Democrats captured 50.2 per cent of the popular vote and 148 of the 250 seats in the legislature. Far behind were the Socialists, with only 60 seats, and the Communists, with 31. The CDS and the PRD were virtually wiped out, left with only four and seven seats, respectively. This was the first time since the 1974 revolution that a single party had won an outright majority in the national parliament. At the time, it was also the largest majority that a Portuguese party had ever won in a free election. Although the occurrence of economic growth and a

public debt A country's gross government debt (also called public debt or sovereign debt) is the financial liabilities of the government sector. Changes in government debt over time reflect primarily borrowing due to past government deficits. A deficit occu ...

relatively well-contained as a result of the number of civil servants was increased from 485,368 in 1988 to 509,732 in 1991, which was a much lower increase than that which took place in the following years until 2011 marked by irrational and unsustainable State employment, from 1988 to 1993, during the government cabinets led by Cavaco Silva, the Portuguese economy was radically changed. As a result, there was a sharp and rapid decrease in the output of

tradable goods Tradability is the property of a Good (economics and accounting), good or Service (economics), service that can be sold in another location distant from where it was produced. A good that is not tradable is called non-tradable. Different goods ha ...

and a rise in the importance of the non-tradable goods sector in the Portuguese economy. In the 1991 election Cavaco Silva's party had a majority even larger (50.6 per cent) than the one of four years earlier. He decided not to contest the 1995 election, and the PSD, lacking a leader of his stature, lost 48 seats and the election.

Post-premiership

Cavaco Silva contested the 1996 presidential election but was defeated by the Mayor of

Jorge Sampaio Jorge Fernando Branco de Sampaio (; 18 September 1939 – 10 September 2021) was a Portuguese lawyer and politician who was the 18th President of Portugal from 1996 to 2006. Sampaio was a member of the Socialist Party, a party which he ...

, the Socialist candidate. Retiring from politics, he served for several years as an advisor to the board of the

Banco de Portugal The Banco de Portugal (, ) is the National central bank (Eurosystem), national central bank for Portugal within the Eurosystem. It was the Portuguese central bank from 1846 to 1998, issuing the Portuguese escudo, escudo. Since 2014, it has also ...

(Bank of Portugal) but retired from this position in 2004. He then became a full professor at the School of Economics and Management of the

, where he taught the undergraduate and MBA programs. He is a member of the Club of Madrid and an honorary member of th
International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation

President of the Republic

On 20 October 2005, Cavaco Silva announced his candidacy for the 2006 presidential election. He was elected President of the Republic on 22 January 2006 with 50.6% of votes cast, avoiding a run-off. He is the first elected

center-right Centre-right politics is the set of right-wing politics, right-wing political ideologies that lean closer to the political centre. It is commonly associated with conservatism, Christian democracy, liberal conservatism, and conservative liberalis ...

president in Portugal since 1974. He is also the second former prime minister to be elected president, after

. He was sworn in on 9 March 2006, becoming Portugal’s first right-of-centre head of state in three decades. He is also the president of the

Portuguese Council of State The Council of State (, ) is a body established by the Portuguese Constitution to advise the President of the Republic in the exercise of many of his or her discretionary powers. History Although there are notices about the existence of a Counci ...

. Cavaco Silva's term was initially marked by a mutual understanding with the government led by Socialist José Sócrates, which he referred to as "strategic cooperation". The most controversial moment of his presidency was when the Assembly of the Republic passed a bill for the holding of a pre-legislative referendum on the legalization of abortion in Portugal without any restrictions in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. After the parliamentary approval of the bill summoning the referendum, Cavaco Silva referred the matter to the Portuguese Constitutional Court, which declared both the proposed legalization and the referendum constitutional by a narrow 7-6 margin. Cavaco Silva, who could still have vetoed the referendum bill, decided to sign it into law and thus allowed the referendum. The majority of the Portuguese electorate abstained from the referendum, but the vote for legalization prevailed among those who chose to cast their ballot. Cavaco Silva was reelected president of Portugal on 23 January 2011 with 52,92% of the vote, and he took office for his second five-year term on 9 March 2011.

2015 constitutional crisis

At the general election on 4 October 2015 to the Assembly of the Republic, the unicameral Portuguese parliament, the right-wing government of Prime Minister

Pedro Passos Coelho Pedro Manuel Mamede Passos Coelho (; born 24 July 1964) is a Portuguese people, Portuguese politician and university guest lecturer who was the List of prime ministers of Portugal, 117th prime minister of Portugal, in office from 2011 to 201 ...

lost its majority, with centre-left and far-left opposition parties gaining more than half of the seats. As Passos Coelho's own

remained the largest in parliament, and still had the support of the much smaller CDS – People's Party, Cavaco Silva allowed Passos Coelho to continue as prime minister, giving him the first chance to form a new government. Passos Coelho was unable to find any new partners and was widely expected to stand down, but on 22 October Cavaco Silva invited him to form a new government, even if it were a minority government. On 24 October Cavaco Silva explained his thinking:Eurozone crosses Rubicon as Portugal's anti-euro Left banned from power] in ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'' dated 24 October 2015, online at telegraph.co.uk, accessed 25 October 2015

António Costa António Luís Santos da Costa (; born 17 July 1961) is a Portuguese lawyer and politician who has served as President of the European Council since 2024. He previously served as the 118th prime minister of Portugal from 2015 to 2024 and th ...

, leader of the Socialist Party, called this a grave mistake and added "It is unacceptable to usurp the exclusive powers of parliament. The Socialists will not take lessons from Professor Cavaco Silva on the defence of our democracy." The Green politician Rui Tavares commented "The president has created a constitutional crisis. He is saying that he will never allow the formation of a government containing Leftists and Communists. People are amazed by what has happened." The opposition parties quickly announced their intention to bring down the new government in a motion of rejection. Eventually, Passos Coelho's government fell on a motion of no confidence, and the president appointed António Costa, the leader of the Socialists, as prime minister in his place.

Family

Cavaco Silva married Maria Alves da Silva at the Church of the Monastery of São Vicente de Fora, São Vicente de Fora, Lisbon, on 20 October 1963. The couple had a daughter Patricia, and a son Bruno. He has five grandchildren, four of whom were born to his daughter. One of them, António Montez, is a professional footballer. His brother, Rogério Cavaco Silva, is a businessman and a victim of the

Dominion of Melchizedek The Dominion of Melchizedek (DoM) is a micronation known for facilitating large scale banking fraud in many parts of the world during the 1990s and early 2000s. Origin and status The Dominion of Melchizedek was unilaterally declared in 1990 by U ...

scam.

Honours

National honours

''Source:'' * PRT Order of Prince Henry - Grand Collar BAR

Grand Collar of the

Order of Prince Henry The Order of Prince Henry () is a Portuguese order of knighthood created on 2 June 1960, to commemorate the quincentenary of the death of the Portuguese ''infante'' Prince Henry the Navigator, one of the main initiators of the Age of Discovery. M ...

(5 July 2022) * PRT Order of Liberty - Grand Collar BAR

Grand Collar of the

Order of Liberty The Order of Liberty, or the Order of Freedom (), is a Portuguese honorific civil order that distinguishes relevant services to the cause of democracy and freedom, in the defense of the values of civilization and human dignity. The order was cr ...

(9 March 2016) * PRT Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword - Grand Collar

Grand Collar of the Military Order of the Tower and Sword (9 March 2011) * PRT Three Orders BAR

Grand Cross of the Sash of the Three Orders (9 March 2006) * PRT Order of Christ - Grand Cross BAR

Grand Cross of the

Military Order of Christ The Military Order of Christ is a Honorific orders of Portugal, Portuguese honorific order. It is the former order of Knights Templar as it was reconstituted in Portugal. Before 1910, it was known as the Royal Military Order of Our Lord Jesus Chr ...

(29 November 1995)

Foreign honours

''Source:'' *: ** Grand Star of the

Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria The Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria () is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria. It is divided into 15 classes and is the highest award in the Austrian national honours system. History The Decoration of Hono ...

(31 August 2009) ** Grand Decoration of Honour in Gold with Sash of the

(14 July 1997) *: ** Grand Collar of the

Order of the Southern Cross The National Order of the Southern Cross () is a Brazilian Orders, decorations, and medals of Brazil, order of chivalry founded by List of monarchs of Brazil, Emperor Pedro I of Brazil, Pedro I on 1 December 1822. The order aimed to commemorate ...

(22 April 2008) ** Grand Cross of the

(4 February 1991) ** Grand Cross of the

Order of Rio Branco Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * ...

(8 October 1991) ** Grand Cross of the Order of the National Congress (4 February 1991) *: First Class of the

Order of the Stara Planina Order (decoration), Orders, State decoration, decorations and medals of Bulgaria are regulated by the law on the Orders and Medals of the Republic of Bulgaria of 29 May 2003. The National Museum of Military History (Bulgaria), National Military H ...

(8 June 2015) *: First Class of the (14 July 2010) *: ** Collar of the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...

(15 November 2007) ** Grand Cross of the

(20 July 2007) ** Grand Cross of the

Order of Bernardo O'Higgins The Order of Bernardo O'Higgins () is an award issued by Chile. It is the highest civilian honor awarded to non-Chilean citizens. This award was established in 1965 and named after one of the founders of the Chilean state, the independentist gener ...

(16 November 2010) *: ** Grand Collar of the Order of Boyacá (14 November 2012) ** Grand Cross of the Order of Boyacá (23 May 1988) *: Grand Cross of the Order of Makarios III (20 November 1990) *: Grand Collar of the

Order of Timor-Leste The Order of Timor-Leste () is the highest Order (honour), honour currently awarded by Timor-Leste. Established in 2009, the order was created after the original honours granted by Timor-Leste. It is of a more general and broader nature than the ...

(6 August 2012) *: Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit (25 January 1991) *: Collar of the

Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana (, also the Order of the Cross of St. Mary's Land) was instituted by the President of Estonia, Lennart Meri, on 16 May 1995 to honour the independence of the Estonian state. (The Latin name ''Terra Mariana'' ...

(13 October 2008) *: Grand Cross of the

Order of the White Rose of Finland The Order of the White Rose of Finland (; ) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The ...

(8 March 1991) *: ** Grand Cross Special Class of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

(26 May 2009) ** Grand Cross of the

(25 January 1991) *: Grand Cross of the Order of Honour (15 May 1990) *: Grand Cross of the (4 February 1991) *: Knight with the Collar of the

Order of Pope Pius IX The Order of Pope Pius IX (), also referred as the Pian Order (, ), is a papal order of knighthood originally founded by Pope Pius IV in 1560. It is the highest honor currently conferred by the Holy See (two higher honors, the Supreme Order of C ...

(30 August 2010) *: ** Collar of the Order of Al-Hussein bin Ali (28 May 2009) ** Grand Cordon with Brilliants (Special Class) of the Supreme Order of the Renaissance (10 December 2009) *: Grand Cross of the Cross of Recognition (22 November 2010) *: Grand Cross with Golden Chain of the

Order of Vytautas the Great The Order of Vytautas the Great () is the Lithuanian Presidential Award.''Lietuvos Respublikos Konstitucija. 84 straipsnis''. Priimta 1992 It may be conferred on the heads of Lithuania and foreign states, as well as their citizens, for distinguish ...

(25 July 2007) *: ** Knight of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau (9 September 2010) ** Grand Cross of the

Order of the Oak Crown The Order of the Oak Crown (, , ) is an order (honour), order of the Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. History The Order of the Oak Crown was established in 1841 by William II of the Netherlands, Grand Duke William II, who was also King o ...

(4 February 1991) *: Honorary Companion of Honour with Collar of the National Order of Merit (11 December 2008) *: Collar of the

Order of the Aztec Eagle The Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle () forms part of the Mexican Honors System and is the highest Mexican order awarded to foreigners. History It was created by decree on December 29, 1933, by President Abelardo L. Rodríguez as a reward to ...

(2 June 2014) *: ** Grand Cordon of the

Order of Ouissam Alaouite The Order of Ouissam Alaouite () or the Sharifian Order of Al-Alaoui is a military decoration of Morocco which is bestowed by the King of Morocco upon those civilians and military officers who have displayed heroism in combat or have contribute ...

(13 February 1995) ** Grand Officer of the

(17 May 1991) *: First Class of the Order of Friendship and Peace (7 October 2014) *: Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau () is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has performed acts of special merits for ...

(25 March 1992) *: Grand Cross of the Order of St Olav (5 November 2008) *: Grand Cordon of the Order of the Star of Palestine (19 July 1995) *: Collar of the

Order of Manuel Amador Guerrero The Order of Manuel Amador Guerrero () is the highest honour of Panama. Named after Manuel Amador Guerrero, the first president of Panama, the order was established on the 50th anniversary of Panama's independence on 29 October 1953. It is awa ...

(30 July 2013) *: Grand Collar of the

Order of the Sun of Peru The Order of the Sun of Peru (Spanish: ''Orden El Sol del Perú''), formerly known as the Order of the Sun, is the highest award bestowed by the nation of Peru to commend notable civil and military merit. The award is the oldest civilian award in ...

(19 November 2012) *: ** Knight of the Order of the White Eagle (22 June 2012) ** Grand Cross of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta (, ) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on alien (law), foreigners for outstanding achievements in ...

(1 October 2008) *: Collar of the Order of Merit (10 December 2009) *: Collar of the

Order of the Star of Romania The Order of the Star of Romania (Romanian: ''Ordinul Steaua României'') is Romania's highest civil Order and second highest State decoration after the Order of Michael the Brave. It is the oldest Order of Romania. It is awarded by the Preside ...

(16 June 2015) *: Grand Cross of the

Order of the White Double Cross The Order of the White Double Cross () is the highest state decoration of the Slovak Republic. The Order was instituted on 1 March 1994 after Slovakia became independent on 1 January 1993. It continues the Czechoslovak Order of the White Lio ...

(4 September 2008) *: ** Collar of the

Order pro Merito Melitensi The Order of Merit (; ) is the order of merit of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, established in 1920. It is awarded to recipients who have brought honour to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, promoted Christian values and for chari ...

(23 November 2010) ** Grand Cross, Special Class of the

(25 January 1991) *: ** Collar of the

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic (; Abbreviation, Abbr.: OYC) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent Order of merit, orders of merit bestowed by the Kingdom of Spain, alongside the Order of Charles III (established in 1771) and ...

(24 September 2006) ** Knight Grand Cross of the

(8 September 1993) *: ** Knight of the

Royal Order of the Seraphim The Royal Order of the Seraphim (; '' Seraphim'' being a category of angels) is the highest order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Sweden. It was created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Ord ...

(9 May 2008) ** Commander Grand Cross of the

Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star (Swedish language, Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden''), sometimes translated as the Royal Order of the North Star, is a Swedish order of chivalry created by Frederick I of Sweden, King Frederick I on 23 F ...

(9 February 1987) *: ** Grand Cordon of the Order of the Republic (18 November 1993) ** Grand Cordon of the Order of 7th November (18 November 1993) *: Recipient of the Order of the State of the Republic of Turkey (24 November 2009) *: Grand Cordon of the Order of the Liberator (18 November 1987)

State visits

Cavaco Silva made state visits to countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. In September 2006, on his first state visit, he visited Portugal's neighbour, Spain.

Electoral history

PSD leadership election, 1985

, - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" ! align="center" colspan=2 style="width: 60px", Candidate ! align="center" style="width: 50px", Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % , - , bgcolor=, , align=left , Aníbal Cavaco Silva , align=right , 422 , align=right , 53.6 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left , João Salgueiro , align=right , 365 , align=right , 46.4 , - , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan=2 style="text-align:left;" , Turnout , align=right , 787 , align=center , , - , colspan="4" align=left, Source: Results

Legislative election, 1985

, - ! colspan="2" , Party ! Candidate ! Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % ! align="center" style="width: 50px", Seats ! align="center" style="width: 50px", +/− , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PSD , align=left , Aníbal Cavaco Silva , , 1,732,288 , , 29.9 , , 88 , , style="color:green;", +13 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PS , align=left , Almeida Santos , , 1,204,321 , , 20.8 , , 57 , , style="color:red;", –44 , - , style="background:green;", , align="left", PRD , align=left ,

Hermínio Martinho Hermínio Paiva Fernandes Martinho (born 23 March 1946) is a Portuguese agricultural engineer and politician, who was the first president of the Democratic Renewal Party (PRD). Early life Hermínio Martinho was born on 23 March 1946 in Tan ...

, , 1,038,893 , , 17.9 , , 45 , , ''new'' , - , style="background:;", , align="left", APU , align=left ,

Álvaro Cunhal Álvaro Barreirinhas Cunhal (; 10 November 1913 – 13 June 2005) was a Portuguese communist revolutionary and politician. He was one of the major opponents of the dictatorial regime of the '' Estado Novo''. He served as secretary-general of the P ...

, , 898,281 , , 15.5 , , 38 , , style="color:red;", –6 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", CDS , align=left , Lucas Pires , , 577,580 , , 10.0 , , 22 , , style="color:red;", –8 , - , style="background:#E2062C;", , align="left", UDP , align=left , Mário Tomé , , 73,401 , , 1.3 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , style="background:white;", , colspan="2" align="left", Other parties , 128,846 , , 2.2 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , colspan="3" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 145,319 , , 2.5 , , – , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="3" align="left", Turnout , 5,798,929 , , 74.16 , , 250 , , ±0 , - , colspan="7" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Legislative election, 1987

, - ! colspan="2" , Party ! Candidate ! Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % ! align="center" style="width: 50px", Seats ! align="center" style="width: 50px", +/− , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PSD , align=left , Aníbal Cavaco Silva , , 2,850,784 , , 50.2 , , 148 , , style="color:green;", +60 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PS , align=left , Vítor Constâncio , , 1,262,506 , , 22.2 , , 60 , , style="color:green;", +3 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", CDU , align=left ,

, , 689,137 , , 12.1 , , 31 , , style="color:red;", –7 , - , style="background:green;", , align="left", PRD , align=left , António Ramalho Eanes , , 278,561 , , 4.9 , , 7 , , style="color:red;", –38 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", CDS , align=left ,

Adriano Moreira Adriano José Alves Moreira, ComC GCC GOIH GCSE (6 September 1922 – 23 October 2022) was a Portuguese lawyer, professor and a leading political figure in Portugal throughout the second half of the 20th century. Education Adriano Moreira ...

, , 251,987 , , 4.4 , , 4 , , style="color:red;", –18 , - , style="background:white;", , colspan="2" align="left", Other parties , 219,715 , , 3.9 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , colspan="3" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 123,668 , , 2.2 , , – , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="3" align="left", Turnout , 5,676,358 , , 71.57 , , 250 , , ±0 , - , colspan="7" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Legislative election, 1991

, - ! colspan="2" , Party ! Candidate ! Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % ! align="center" style="width: 50px", Seats ! align="center" style="width: 50px", +/− , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PSD , align=left , Aníbal Cavaco Silva , , 2,902,351 , , 50.6 , , 135 , , style="color:red;", –13 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PS , align=left ,

, , 1,670,758 , , 29.1 , , 72 , , style="color:green;", +12 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", CDU , align=left ,

, , 504,583 , , 8.8 , , 17 , , style="color:red;", –14 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", CDS , align=left , Diogo Freitas do Amaral , , 254,317 , , 4.4 , , 5 , , style="color:green;", +1 , - , style="background:#000080;", , align="left", PSN , align=left ,

Manuel Sérgio Manuel Sérgio Vieira e Cunha (20 April 1933 – 19 February 2025) was a Portuguese philosopher of sport, academic, activist and politician, specialized in the field of human kinetics. In the 1990s, Manuel Sérgio was involved in Portuguese ...

, , 96,096 , , 1.6 , , 1 , , ''new'' , - , style="background:red;", , align="left", PSR , align=left , Francisco Louçã , , 64,159 , , 1.1 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , style="background:white;", , colspan="2" align="left", Other parties , 132,495 , , 2.3 , , 0 , , style="color:red;", –7 , - , colspan="3" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 110,672 , , 1.9 , , – , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="3" align="left", Turnout , 5,735,431 , , 67.78 , , 230 , , style="color:red;", –20 , - , colspan="7" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Presidential election, 1996

, - ! colspan="2" , Candidate ! Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % , - , style="background:;", , align=left ,

, , 3,035,056 , , 53.9 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Aníbal Cavaco Silva , , 2,595,131 , , 46.1 , - , colspan="2" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 132,791 , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="2" align="left", Turnout , 5,762,978 , , 66.29 , - , colspan="4" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Presidential election, 2006

, - ! colspan="2" , Candidate ! Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Aníbal Cavaco Silva , , 2,773,431 , , 50.5 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Manuel Alegre , , 1,138,297 , , 20.7 , - , style="background:;", , align=left ,

, , 785,355 , , 14.3 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Jerónimo de Sousa , , 474,083 , , 8.6 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Francisco Louçã , , 292,198 , , 5.3 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Garcia Pereira , , 23,983 , , 0.4 , - , colspan="2" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 102,785 , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="2" align="left", Turnout , 5,590,132 , , 61.53 , - , colspan="4" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Presidential election, 2011

, - ! colspan="2" , Candidate ! Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Aníbal Cavaco Silva , , 2,231,956 , , 53.0 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Manuel Alegre , , 831,838 , , 19.7 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Fernando Nobre , , 593,021 , , 14.1 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Francisco Lopes , , 301,017 , , 7.1 , - , style="background:#1F468B;", , align=left , José Manuel Coelho , , 189,918 , , 4.5 , - , style="background:;", , align=left , Defensor Moura , , 67,110 , , 1.6 , - , colspan="2" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 277,593 , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="2" align="left", Turnout , 4,492,453 , , 46.52 , - , colspan="4" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Bibliography

* ''Cavaco Silva, Autobiografia Política'', in 2 Vols.

References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Cavaco Silva, Anibal 1939 births 21st-century Portuguese politicians Alumni of the University of York Academic staff of the Catholic University of Portugal Living people Members of the Assembly of the Republic (Portugal) People from Loulé 20th-century Portuguese economists Presidents of Portugal Prime ministers of Portugal Finance ministers of Portugal Social Democratic Party (Portugal) politicians Technical University of Lisbon alumni Collars of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Grand Crosses of the Order of Christ (Portugal) Grand Crosses Special Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Grand Crosses with Golden Chain of the Order of Vytautas the Great Recipients of the Collar of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana Recipients of the Order of the Tower and Sword Recipients of the Order of Timor-Leste Recipients of the Order of the Star of Romania Recipients of Supreme Order of the Renaissance (Jordan) Recipients of the Order of Al-Hussein bin Ali