Carlos Leitão was elected to the National Assembly of Quebec in 2014 and held the position of Minister of Finance between 2014 and 2018. During that time, he was a member of the Committee on Public Finance and a member of the Ministerial Committee for the Economy, Job Creation and Sustainable Development.

In 2016, he served as President of the Treasury Board. Between 2018 and 2022, while in opposition, he chaired the Public Administration Committee and was vice president of the Committee on Public Finance.

Carlos represented the provincial riding of Robert-Baldwin in the Montreal area until his retirement from politics in 2022.

In May 2023, Carlos Leitão was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Bank of Canada.

Before his life in politics, Carlos Leitão spent more than 30 years in the Canadian banking and financial sector. From 1983 to 2003, he was an economist at the Royal Bank of Canada. Then became Chief Economist of Laurentian Bank Securities, a position he held from 2003 to 2014.

Carlos Leitão holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from McGill University.

Carlos Leitão has been a member of the Portuguese Diaspora Council since November 2023.