Carlos Mota Pinto

Carlos Mota Pinto
Prime Minister of Portugal
In office
22 November 1978  1 August 1979
PresidentAntónio Ramalho Eanes
DeputyManuel Jacinto Nunes
Preceded byAlfredo Nobre da Costa
Succeeded byMaria de Lurdes Pintasilgo
President of the Social Democratic Party
In office
25 March 1984  10 February 1985
Secretary-GeneralFrancisco Antunes da Silva
Preceded byNuno Rodrigues dos Santos
Succeeded byRui Machete
Deputy Prime Minister of Portugal
In office
9 June 1983  15 February 1985
Prime MinisterMário Soares
Preceded byDiogo Freitas do Amaral
Succeeded byRui Machete
Minister of National Defence
In office
9 June 1983  15 February 1985
Prime MinisterMário Soares
Preceded byDiogo Freitas do Amaral
Succeeded byRui Machete
Minister of Commerce
In office
25 March 1977  30 January 1978
Prime MinisterMário Soares
Preceded byAntónio Barreto
Succeeded byBasílio Horta
Personal details
Born(1936-07-25)25 July 1936
Pombal, Portugal
Died7 May 1985(1985-05-07) (aged 48)
Coimbra, Portugal
Political partySocial Democratic (1974–1975; 1979–1985)
Other political
affiliations
Independent (1975–1979)
SpouseMaria Fernanda Correia
Alma materUniversity of Coimbra
OccupationJurist, professor

Carlos Alberto da Mota Pinto GCC GCIP (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈkaɾluz alˈβɛɾtu ðɐ ˈmɔtɐ ˈpĩtu]; 25 July 1936 7 May 1985) was a Portuguese professor and politician who served as the prime minister of Portugal between November 1978 and August 1979.

Mota Pinto was one of the first members of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) in 1974. As an independent, he was minister of Commerce and Tourism in the first Constitutional Government of Portugal, between 1977 and 1978. In November 1978, also as an independent, he was appointed by President António Ramalho Eanes to be the prime minister in the IV Constitutional Government. In the following year, he resigned from the position and was succeeded by Maria de Lourdes Pintasilgo in August.

As a member of the PSD, he ran for prime minister in the 1983 legislative election, finishing second to Mário Soares, from the Socialist Party (PS). The two parties agreed on a coalition that became known as the Central Bloc, and Mota Pinto served as deputy prime minister and minister of National Defence in the IX Constitutional Government, between 1983 and 1985. A few months after leaving office, he died suddenly of an aneurysm at the age of 48.