Carlos Moedas

Carlos Moedas
Carlos Moedas
Born	Carlos Manuel Félix Moedas; August 10, 1970 (age 56); Beja, Alentejo, Portugal
Occupation(s)	Civil engineer, economist, politician
Years active	1993–present
Known for	Mayor of Lisbon, European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation

Carlos Manuel Félix Moedas (born 10 August 1970) is a Portuguese civil engineer, economist, and politician affiliated with the Social Democratic Party (PSD), currently holding the position of Mayor of Lisbon.

Between 2014 and 2019, Moedas served as the European Commissioner responsible for Research, Science and Innovation during the tenure of President Jean-Claude Juncker. Prior to this role, from 2011 to 2014, he was Secretary of State in Portugal’s XIX Constitutional Government of Portugal.

In March 2021, he declared his intention to run for Mayor of Lisbon in the 2021 local elections, securing victory on 26 September.

Early life and education

Born in Beja, Alentejo, Portugal, in 1970, Moedas is the son of a communist journalist and a seamstress. He completed his Civil Engineering degree at Instituto Superior Técnico, Lisbon University, in 1993. During his final academic year, he participated in the Erasmus Programme at École des Ponts ParisTech in Paris, becoming one of the earliest Portuguese students to attend this institution through the program.

Professional career

Following graduation, Moedas worked as a project manager at Suez Group in France from 1993 to 1998. He obtained an MBA from Harvard Business School in 2000 before returning to Europe to engage in mergers and acquisitions at Goldman Sachs. Subsequently, he joined Eurohypo Investment Bank’s Real Estate Investment Banking Division. In 2004, he returned to Portugal to assume the role of Managing Partner at Aguirre Newman Portugal (currently Savills Portugal). In 2008, he established Crimson Investment Management, an investment management company.

Political career

In response to the Eurozone financial crisis, Moedas led the Economic Research Unit for the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and co-chaired the party’s negotiations on Portugal's 2011 State Budget. He was elected as a Member of Parliament representing Beja—the first PSD deputy from that district since 1995—and appointed Secretary of State within the XIX Constitutional Government.

He also directed EASME, managing structural reforms linked to the EU-IMF troika assistance program. In 2014, Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho proposed him for European Commissioner; his nomination received approval from EC President Jean-Claude Juncker. Moedas began his term as European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation in November 2014.

In March 2021, Moedas announced his mayoral candidacy for Lisbon and won the election in September 2021, officially taking office on 18 October.

Other activities

Member of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) since 2021
Member of the Chancellor’s Commission at Aga Khan University since 2021
Participant in the High-Level Group on Africa-Europe Relations at Africa Europe Foundation (AEF) since 2020
Board of Trustees member at Friends of Europe since 2020
Advisory Board member for UNESCO's "Futures of Education" Initiative since 2019
Vice-President (since 2020) and Board Member (since 2019) at the Jacques Delors Institute
Advisory Board member at Re-Imagine Europa

Lisbon City Council election, 2021

Political Group		Candidate	Votes	%	Seats	Change
	PSD/CDS–PP/Alliance/MPT/PPM	Carlos Moedas	83,185	34.3	7	+1
	PS/Livre	Fernando Medina	80,907	33.3	7	−1
	CDU	João Ferreira	25,550	10.5	2	±0
	BE	Beatriz Gomes Dias	15,057	6.2	1	±0
	Chega	Nuno Graciano	10,730	4.4	0	new
	IL	Bruno Horta Soares	10,213	4.2	0	new
	PAN	Manuela Gonzaga	6,625	2.7	0	±0
	Other political entities		3,031	1.3	0	±0
Blank or invalid votes			7,445	3.1	–	–
Voter turnout			242,743	50.99	17	±0
Source: Autárquicas 2021

Honours and awards

Inducted as a Member of the Portuguese Academy of Engineering (2014)
Awarded Commander rank of the Spanish Order of Civil Merit by King Felipe VI (2015)
Conferred Honorary Doctorate in Laws by University of Cork (2016)
Received Honorary Doctorate from ESCP Europe - École supérieure de commerce de Paris (2018)
Named Honorary Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (2018)
Bestowed Gold Medal from the Portuguese Order of Engineering (2019)
Recipient of the University of Coimbra Prize (2020)
Granted Honorary Doctorates by Universidade Nova de Lisboa and West University of Timisoara (2022)
Knighted in the Pontifical Equestrian Order of Pope St Sylvester (2023)
Awarded Grand Cross of the Order of Infante D. Henrique (2023)
Honored as Distinguished Citizen of Buenos Aires (2024)
Received Civic Intervention Award from the Order of Engineers (2024)
Decorated with the French Legion of Honor Award (2025)

Publications

Amaro, N. L., Moedas, C. 2011. O Novo Paradigma do Investimento Imobiliário: Análise e estratégias para um sector-chave da economia. Sabedoria Alternativa
Bogers, M., Chesbrough, H., Moedas, C. 2018. Open Innovation: Research, Practices, and Policies. California Management Review, 60(2), pp.5-16
Moedas, C. "Vento Suão: Portugal e a Europa", Guerra e Paz, Lisboa, 2020

External links

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