Presidential elections were held in Portugal on 27 June 1976.

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1976 Portuguese presidential election

← 1972 27 June 1976 1980 →
Turnout	75.47%
Candidate António Ramalho Eanes Otelo Saraiva de Carvalho Party Independent[lower-alpha 1] Independent[lower-alpha 2] Popular vote 2,967,137 792,760 Percentage 61.59% 16.46%   IND Candidate José Pinheiro de Azevedo Octávio Pato Party Independent PCP Popular vote 692,147 365,586 Percentage 14.37% 7.59%
Results by district Results by municipality Eanes   30-40%   40-50%   50-60%   60-70%   70-80%   80-90%   >90% Carvalho   30-40%   40-50%   50-60%   60-70% Pato   30-40%   40-50%
President before election Francisco da Costa Gomes Independent Elected President António Ramalho Eanes Independent

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With a broad base of support that comprised the center-left and the center-right, Ramalho Eanes won the election on the first round and became the first elected President of Portugal after the Carnation Revolution.

The Portuguese Communist Party presented its own candidate, Octávio Pato, a well known anti-fascist. One of the major responsibles for the military operations during the Carnation Revolution, in 1974, Otelo Saraiva de Carvalho, was also a candidate.

Any Portuguese citizen over 35 years old has the opportunity to run for president. In order to do so it is necessary to gather between 7,500 and 15,000 signatures and submit them to the Portuguese Constitutional Court.

According to the Portuguese Constitution, to be elected, a candidate needs a majority of votes. If no candidate gets this majority there will take place a second round between the two most voted candidates.