Francisco Manuel Lumbrales de Sá Carneiro (; 19 July 19344 December 1980) was a Portuguese politician, who was one of the founders and the first leader of 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 ...

(then known as the Popular Democratic Party). He served 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 ...

for eleven months during 1980, until his death in a

plane crash An aviation accident is an event during aircraft operation that results serious injury, death, or significant destruction. An aviation incident is any operating event that compromises safety but does not escalate into an aviation accident. Pre ...

in Camarate on 4 December 1980.

Background

Sá Carneiro was born in Vitória,

Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...

, the fifth of the eight children of

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

José Gualberto Chaves Marques de Sá Carneiro (1897–1978) and Maria Francisca Judite Pinto da Costa Leite (1908–1989) of the Counts of Lumbrales in Spain.

Career

A lawyer by training, Sá Carneiro became a member of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

in 1969 and, in turn, one of the leaders of the "Liberal Wing" (''Ala Liberal'') which attempted to work for the gradual transformation of

Marcelo Caetano Marcello José das Neves Alves Caetano (17 August 1906 – 26 October 1980) was a Portuguese politician and scholar. He was the second and last leader of the Estado Novo after succeeding António de Oliveira Salazar. He served as prime mini ...

's dictatorship into a Western European

liberal democracy Liberal democracy, also called Western-style democracy, or substantive democracy, is a form of government that combines the organization of a democracy with ideas of liberalism, liberal political philosophy. Common elements within a liberal dem ...

. In May 1974, a month after the

Carnation Revolution The Carnation Revolution (), code-named Operation Historic Turn (), also known as the 25 April (), was a military coup by military officers that overthrew the Estado Novo government on 25 April 1974 in Portugal. The coup produced major socia ...

, Sá Carneiro founded the Popular Democratic Party (PPD), together with

Francisco Pinto Balsemão Francisco José Pereira Pinto Balsemão (; born 1 September 1937) is a Portuguese businessman, former journalist and retired politician, who served as List of Prime Ministers of Portugal, Prime Minister of Portugal, from 1981 to 1983. Backgroun ...

Joaquim Magalhães Mota Joaquim Jorge de Magalhães Saraiva da Mota (November 17, 1935 in Santarém, São Salvador – September 26, 2007 in Lisbon) was a Portuguese lawyer and politician. Background He was a son of Elói do Nascimento Saraiva da Mota (July 2, 190 ...

, Carlos Mota Pinto, João Bosco Mota Amaral,

Alberto João Jardim Alberto João Cardoso Gonçalves Jardim, Order of Christ (Portugal), GCC, Order of Infante D. Henrique, GCIH (, born 4 February 1943) is a Portuguese politician who was the President of the Regional Government of Madeira, Portugal, from 1978 to 20 ...

António Barbosa de Melo António Moreira Barbosa de Melo, Order of Liberty, GColL (2 November 1932 – 7 September 2016) was a Portuguese lawyer, politician, and Member of parliament, parliamentarian on several occasions. Career de Melo was born in Lagares (Penafiel), ...

and António Marques Mendes, and became its secretary-general. The PPD was soon renamed the Social Democratic Party (PSD); despite Sá Carneiro's original claims to be leading a left-of-centre party, he and the party soon drifted to the right, becoming the country's main centre-right force. He was

minister without portfolio A minister without portfolio is a government minister without specific responsibility as head of a government department. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet with decision-making authorit ...

in a number of provisional governments, and was elected as a deputy to the Constitutional Assembly the next year. In 1976, he was elected to the Assembly of the Republic. In November 1977, he resigned his office as president of the party, only to be reelected to that office the next year. In the general election of late 1979, he led the Democratic Alliance, a coalition of his Social Democratic Party, the right-wing Democratic and Social Centre Party, and two smaller parties, to victory. The Alliance polled 45.2 percent of the popular vote and gained 128 of the 250 seats in the Assembly of the Republic; 75 of these were from the PSD.

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 António dos Santos Ramalho Eanes (born 25 January 1935) is a Portuguese general and politician who was the 16th president of Portugal from 1976 to 1986. Background Born at Alcains, Castelo Branco, he is the son of Manuel dos Santos Eanes, ...

subsequently called on him to form a government on 3 January 1980, and formed Portugal's first

majority government A majority government is a government by one or more governing parties that hold an absolute majority of seats in a legislature. Such a government can consist of one party that holds a majority on its own, or be a coalition government of multi ...

since the

of 1974. In a second general election held in October that year, the Democratic Alliance increased its majority. The Alliance received 47.2 percent of the popular vote and 134 seats, 82 of them from the PSD. Sá Carneiro's triumph appeared to augur well for the

presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The p ...

two months later, in which Sá Carneiro was supporting António Soares Carneiro (no relation).

Death

His victory was short-lived, however. On 4 December 1980, while on his way to a presidential election rally in

, the

Cessna 421 The Cessna 421 Golden Eagle is an American six or seven seat twin-engined light transport aircraft, developed in the 1960s by Cessna as a pressurized version of the earlier Cessna 411. Development The Cessna 421 was first produced in May 1967 ...

he was on crashed into a building in Camarate,

Loures Loures () is a city and a municipality in Portugal which is part of the Lisbon District, District and Lisbon Metropolitan Area, Metropolitan area of Lisbon. It is the fifth most populous municipality in the country, with a total population of 201, ...

, soon after takeoff from

Lisbon Airport Humberto Delgado Airport , informally Lisbon Airport and previously Portela Airport, is an international airport located northeast of the Baixa Pombalina, historical city centre of Lisbon, Portugal. With more than 35 million passengers per yea ...

. Eyewitnesses claimed they saw pieces falling from the plane just moments after it took off. Rumours have continued to fuel

conspiracy theories A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...

that the crash was in fact an

assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

, but no firm evidence has come to light. There were even different theories as to who might have been the target of such an assassination, as Francisco de Sá Carneiro was travelling with the Defence Minister, Adelino Amaro da Costa, who had said he had documents relating to the October surprise conspiracy theory and was planning on taking them to the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its Seventy-ninth session of th ...

. A parliamentary inquiry said in 2004 that there was evidence of a bomb in the aircraft, after a 1995 inquiry had concluded there was evidence of sabotage. Dependent to a considerable extent on Sá Carneiro's personal popularity, the Democratic Alliance was unable to maintain its momentum in the wake of his death. Faced with a national crisis, the public rallied behind the incumbent president, António Ramalho Eanes, who easily defeated the Alliance candidate in the presidential election a few days later. The Pedra Rubras airport where Sá Carneiro was heading has been named after him as

Francisco de Sá Carneiro Airport Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport or simply Porto Airport (formerly ''Pedras Rubras Airport'') is an international airport near Porto (Oporto), Portugal. It is located northwest of the Clérigos Tower (in the centre of Porto). Its location is sp ...

, in 1990, despite objections that it would be in bad taste to name an airport after someone who died in a plane crash.

Family

He was married on 13 May 1957, in Miragaia, Porto, to Isabel Maria Ferreira Nunes de Matos (1 October 1936, Miragaia,

), and had five children: * Francisco Nunes de Matos de Sá Carneiro (12 March 1958,

Cedofeita Cedofeita () is a former civil parish in the municipality of Porto, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Cedofeita, Santo Ildefonso, Sé, Miragaia, São Nicolau e Vitória. The population in 2011 was 22,077, in an area of .

), unmarried and without issue * Isabel Maria Nunes de Matos de Sá Carneiro (7 July 1959,

), unmarried and without issue * Maria Teresa Nunes de Matos de Sá Carneiro (11 August 1961,

), had two sons: ** Francisco de Sá Carneiro e Nogueira (1986,

Santo Ildefonso Santo Ildefonso () is a former civil parish in the municipality of Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Po ...

) ** Lourenço de Sá Carneiro e Nogueira (1988,

) * José Nunes de Matos de Sá Carneiro (1 April 1963,

), married on 8 September 1991, in Luso,

Mealhada Mealhada () is a city and a municipality located in Aveiro District in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 20,428, in an area of 110.66 km2. It had 17,043 eligible voters (2006). The city of Mealhada itself has a population of 4,522.

, Isabel Maria Guedes de Macedo Girão (25 January 1965, Ramalde,

), and had an only daughter: ** Inês de Macedo Girão de Sá Carneiro (21 March 1992,

) * Pedro Nunes de Matos de Sá Carneiro (12 September 1964,

), married to Maria Benedita de Matos Chaves Pinheiro Torres (28 May 1967), of the Barons of Torre de Pero Palha, and had an only daughter: ** Maria Teresa Pinheiro Torres de Sá Carneiro (17 August 2000,

) Later in life he lived together with Snu Abecassis, who died in the same accident as Sá Carneiro.

Ideological assessment and legacy

Sá Carneiro started his political life in the youth of the Acção Católica (the Portuguese

Catholic Action Catholic Action is a movement of Catholic laity, lay people within the Catholic Church which advocates for increased Catholic influence on society. Catholic Action groups were especially active in the nineteenth century in historically Catholic cou ...

), being his first activity in civic life to write a letter to

requesting the return of the António Ferreira Gomes, the

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

pro-democracy Democratization, or democratisation, is the structural government transition from an authoritarian government to a more democratic political regime, including substantive political changes moving in a democratic direction. Whether and to what ...

bishop of Oporto. He probably had links with the Catholic syndicalist organizations and

Christian socialism Christian socialism is a Religious philosophy, religious and political philosophy that blends Christianity and socialism, endorsing socialist economics on the basis of the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. Many Christian socialists believe cap ...

in general. He was very influenced by Catholic

personalism Personalism is an intellectual stance that emphasizes the importance of human persons. Personalism exists in many different versions, and this makes it somewhat difficult to define as a philosophical and theological movement. Friedrich Schleie ...

and

humanism Humanism is a philosophy, philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential, and Agency (philosophy), agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The me ...

(especially its Christian version). Sá Carneiro tried to adapt the

social-democratic Social democracy is a social, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achieving social equality. In modern practice, socia ...

ideas of the likes of

Eduard Bernstein Eduard Bernstein (; 6 January 1850 – 18 December 1932) was a German Marxist theorist and politician. A prominent member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), he has been both condemned and praised as a "Revisionism (Marxism), revisi ...

and the post-1945 SPD to the cultural context of Portugal and its traditionally

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

society. The

Godesberg Program The Godesberg Program () of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) was ratified in 1959 at a convention in the town of Bad Godesberg near Bonn. It represented a fundamental change in the orientation and goals of the SPD, rejecting the aim ...

had a very important influence in his social democratic thought as it became the model for his party and its cut with

Marxist Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...

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

. Despite having an anti-

collectivist In sociology, a social organization is a pattern of relationships between and among individuals and groups. Characteristics of social organization can include qualities such as sexual composition, spatiotemporal cohesion, leadership, struct ...

and anti-

statist In political science, statism or etatism (from French, ''état'' 'state') is the doctrine that the political authority of the state is legitimate to some degree. This may include economic and social policy, especially in regard to taxation an ...

party with an emphasis on

personal rights Personal rights are the rights that a person has over their own body. In the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, personal rights are defined as "rights (as of personal security, personal liberty, and private property) appertaining to the person". Among p ...

and

duties A duty (from "due" meaning "that which is owing"; , past participle of ; , whence "debt") is a commitment or expectation to perform some action in general or if certain circumstances arise. A duty may arise from a system of ethics or morality, e ...

that was responsible for privatizing the industrial sectors nationalized during the revolutionary period, he increased social spending during his term, supported

land reform Land reform (also known as agrarian reform) involves the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership, land use, and land transfers. The reforms may be initiated by governments, by interested groups, or by revolution. Lan ...

and its redistribution in Alentejo and he was proud that his party had been adopted by the working,

middle-class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...

blue-collar worker A blue-collar worker is a person who performs manual labour, manual labor or Tradesman, skilled trades. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled labor. The type of work may involve manufacturing, retail, Warehouse, warehousing, mining, ...

and middle-low class workers and that his party defended "the construction of a socialist society in liberty". Due to all these specificities, he called his party's ideology "Portuguese Social Democracy". He was recognized as

populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...

by supporters and opponents, as well as neutral analysts.

Works

Sá Carneiro was the author of various works, among them: *''Uma Tentativa de Participação Política'' (An Attempt of Political Participation) (1973) *''Por uma Social-Democracia Portuguesa'' (For a Portuguese Social Democracy) (1975) *''Poder Civil; Autoridade Democrática e Social-Democracia'' (Civilian Power; Democratic Authority and Social Democracy (1975) *''Uma Constituição para os Anos 80: Contributo para um Projecto de Revisão'' (A Constitution for the 1980s: Contribution for a Project of Revision) (1979).

Electoral history

Constituent Assembly, 1975

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

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 ...

, , 2,162,972 , , 37.9 , , 116 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PPD , align=left , Francisco Sá Carneiro , , 1,507,282 , , 26.4 , , 81 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PCP , 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 ...

, , 711,935 , , 12.5 , , 30 , - , style="background:;", , align="left",

CDS CDS, CDs, Cds, etc. may refer to: Finance * Canadian Depository for Securities, Canadian post-trade financial services company * Certificate of deposit (CDs) * Counterfeit Deterrence System, developed by the Central Bank Counterfeit Deterrence ...

, align=left ,

Diogo Freitas do Amaral Diogo Pinto de Freitas do Amaral (; 21 July 1941 – 3 October 2019) was a Portuguese politician and law professor. He was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 10 January 1980 to 12 January 1981 and from 12 March 2005 to 3 July 2006. He also serv ...

, , 434,879 , , 7.6 , , 16 , - , style="background:darkred;", , align="left", MDP/CDE , align=left , Francisco Pereira de Moura , , 236,318 , , 4.1 , , 5 , - , style="background:red;", , align="left", FSP , align=left , Manuel Serra , , 66,307 , , 1.2 , , 0 , - , style="background:red;", , align="left", MES , align=left , Afonso de Barros , , 58,248 , , 1.0 , , 0 , - , style="background:white;", , colspan="2" align="left", Other parties , 137,213 , , 2.4 , , 2 , - , colspan="3" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 396,675 , , 7.0 , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="3" align="left", Turnout , 5,711,829 , , 91.66 , , 250 , - , colspan="6" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Legislative election, 1976

, , 1,912,921 , , 34.9 , , 107 , , style="color:red;", –9 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PPD , align=left , Francisco Sá Carneiro , , 1,335,381 , , 24.4 , , 73 , , style="color:red;", –8 , - , style="background:;", , align="left",

, align=left ,

, , 876,007 , , 16.0 , , 42 , , style="color:green;", +26 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PCP , align=left ,

, , 788,830 , , 14.4 , , 40 , , style="color:green;", +10 , - , style="background:#E2062C;", , align="left", UDP , align=left , Mário Tomé , , 91,690 , , 1.7 , , 1 , , ±0 , - , style="background:white;", , colspan="2" align="left", Other parties , 220,936 , , 4.0 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , colspan="3" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 257,696 , , 2.7 , , – , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="3" align="left", Turnout , 5,483,461 , , 83.53 , , 263 , , style="color:green;", +13 , - , colspan="7" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

PSD leadership election, 1978

, - 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 , Francisco Sá Carneiro , align=center , , align=right , 100.0 , - , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan=2 style="text-align:left;" , Turnout , align=right , , align=center , , - , colspan="4" align=left, Source: Congress 1978

Legislative election, 1979

, - ! colspan="2" , Party ! Candidate ! Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % ! align="center" style="width: 50px", Seats ! align="center" style="width: 50px", +/− , - , style="background:#2A52BE;", , align="left", AD , align=left , Francisco Sá Carneiro , , 2,719,208 , , 45.3 , , 128 , , style="color:green;", +13 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PS , align=left ,

, , 1,642,136 , , 27.3 , , 74 , , style="color:red;", –33 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", APU , align=left ,

, , 1,129,322 , , 18.8 , , 47 , , style="color:green;", +7 , - , style="background:#E2062C;", , align="left", UDP , align=left , Mário Tomé , , 130,842 , , 2.2 , , 1 , , ±0 , - , style="background:darkolivegreen;", , align="left", PDC , align=left , José Sanches Osório , , 72,514 , , 1.2 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , style="background:white;", , colspan="2" align="left", Other parties , 149,717 , , 2.5 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , colspan="3" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 163,714 , , 2.7 , , – , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="3" align="left", Turnout , 6,007,453 , , 82.86 , , 250 , , style="color:red;", –13 , - , colspan="7" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Legislative election, 1980

, - ! colspan="2" , Party ! Candidate ! Votes ! align="center" style="width: 50px", % ! align="center" style="width: 50px", Seats ! align="center" style="width: 50px", +/− , - , style="background:#2A52BE;", , align="left", AD , align=left , Francisco Sá Carneiro , , 2,868,076 , , 47.6 , , 134 , , style="color:green;", +6 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", PS , align=left ,

, , 1,673,279 , , 27.8 , , 74 , , ±0 , - , style="background:;", , align="left", APU , align=left ,

, , 1,009,505 , , 16.8 , , 41 , , style="color:red;", –6 , - , style="background:#E2062C;", , align="left", UDP , align=left , Mário Tomé , , 83,204 , , 1.4 , , 1 , , ±0 , - , style="background:red;", , align="left",

POUS The pous ( podes; , ''poús'') or Greek foot ( feet) was a Greek unit of length of approximately 300mm or 12 inches. It had various subdivisions whose lengths varied by place and over time. 100 podes made up one plethron, 600 podes made ...

, align=left , Carmelinda Pereira , , 83,095 , , 1.4 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , style="background:#780000;", , align="left", PSR , align=left , – , , 60,496 , , 1.0 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , style="background:white;", , colspan="2" align="left", Other parties , 111,078 , , 1.8 , , 0 , , ±0 , - , colspan="3" align="left", Blank/Invalid ballots , 137,692 , , 2.3 , , – , , – , - style="background-color:#E9E9E9" , colspan="3" align="left", Turnout , 6,026,395 , , 83.94 , , 250 , , ±0 , - , colspan="7" align=left, Source: Comissão Nacional de Eleições

Honours

Grand-Cross of the Order of Christ,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

(29 May 1981) * PRT Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword - Grand Cross BAR

Grand-Cross of the Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of Valour, Loyalty and Merit, Portugal (7 March 1986) * PRT Order of Liberty - Grand Cross BAR

Grand Cross 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 ...

, Portugal (29 November 1990)

References

External links

* and of a version with English subtitles of the official Social Democratic Party documentary made on 25th anniversary of Sá Carneiro's death (4 December 2005) {{DEFAULTSORT:Sa Carneiro, Francisco 1934 births 1980 deaths Conspiracy theories in Europe Recipients of the Order of the Tower and Sword Grand Crosses of the Order of Christ (Portugal) Grand Crosses of the Order of Liberty Politicians from Porto 20th-century Portuguese lawyers Portuguese Roman Catholics Portuguese social democrats Prime ministers of Portugal State leaders killed in aviation accidents or incidents Social Democratic Party (Portugal) politicians University of Lisbon alumni Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1980 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Portugal Portuguese political party founders