Lisbon voters reelect mayor in spite of horrific streetcar crash

Voters have returned Lisbon’s mayor to office in Portugal’s municipal elections, less than six weeks after a streetcar crash in the Portuguese capital killed 16 people, including 11 tourists, and caused a public outcry.

Mayor Carlos Moedas, heading a right-of-center coalition, won 42% of the vote in Lisbon, compared with 34% for second-placed left-of-center leader Alexandra Leitão, according to official results published late Sunday [yesterday, Macau time].

Moedas rejected any blame for the Sept. 3 crash, which was one of Lisbon’s worst tragedies in living memory, and refused to resign.

Carris, the company operating the streetcar service and other public transport in the city, is overseen by the Lisbon City Council. An official investigation is focusing on whether poor maintenance was to blame for any problems with the streetcar’s brakes and a safety cable.

His four-year term as mayor has also brought criticism of his policies on housing, immigration and trash collection as Lisbon creaks under the strain of a surge in tourists and a steep climb in real estate prices.

His election as mayor four years ago was a common career route for politicians eyeing higher office, with political responsibility for the capital regarded as a stepping stone.

Many say their vote is influenced far more by other issues in the city, such as housing policies and trash collection as Lisbon creaks under the strain of a surge in tourists and a steep climb in real estate prices.

“Chaotic traffic, a total mess, garbage like we hadn’t seen in many years,” said José Rosa, 72. “Of course this garbage issue is the result of a series of reasons but it needs planning. Politics is not just about performing in the face of issues, it is about anticipating them.”

His vote would not be influenced by the streetcar crash, he said.

For Sandra Almeida, one of the main issues is housing. “Us Lisbonites, we cannot live in Lisbon, we are being expelled from our own city,” she said.

Lisbon voter Ana Btelho said the streetcar crash “only reinforced my opinion of the person representing us on the City Hall at the moment, and I think he represents us quite badly.”

Moedas, 55, is viewed as a rising star in Portugal’s center-right Social Democratic Party and widely regarded as a potential future prime minister.

With a Harvard MBA, Moedas worked for Goldman Sachs and later set up his own investment management fund.

After a brief spell as a junior government minister and as a lawmaker, he became in 2014 a European commissioner in charge of the bloc’s research, innovation and science arm. His election as mayor four years ago was a common career route for politicians eyeing higher office, with political responsibility for the capital regarded as a steppingstone. MDT/AP