Politics of Brazil
Brazil is a federal republic with 26 states and a federal district.
The 1988 constitution grants broad powers to the federal government, made up of executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
The president holds office for 4 years, with the right to re-election for an additional 4-year term, and appoints his own cabinet.
There are 81 senators, three for each state and the Federal District, and 513 deputies.
Senate terms are for 8 years, with election staggered so that two-thirds of the upper house is up for election at one time and one-third 4 years later.
Chamber terms are for 4 years, with elections based on a complex system of proportional representation by states.
The seats are alloted proportionally to each state's population, but each state is eligible for a minimum of 8 seats and a maximum of 70 seats. The result is a system weighted in favor of smaller states.
Fifteen political parties are represented in Congress.
Since it is common for politicians to switch parties, the proportion of congressional seats held by particular parties changes regularly. The following are the major political parties:
Chamber of Deputies
Senate
Federative republic
26 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Acre, Alagoas, Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, CearÃÂá, Distrito Federal*, EspÃÂÃÂrito Santo, GoiÃÂás, MaranhÃÂão, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, ParÃÂá, Paraiba, ParanÃÂá, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul, Rondonia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, SÃÂão Paulo, Sergipe, Tocantins
7 September 1822 (from Portugal)
Independence Day, 7 September (1822)
Based on Roman codes;
has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction.
Suffrage is
voluntary between 16 and 18 years of age and over 70; compulsory over 18 and under 70 years of age.
President, State governors and Mayors are elected in 2 turns. First 2 candidates of the first turn go for second. Senate is elected in 1 turn, winner takes all. Deputies are elected by proportional elections, but with no list.
President and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held October 2003(next to be held October 2007)
Luiz InÃÂácio Lula da Silva elected president; percent of vote - 61,2%
Bicameral National Congress or Congresso Nacional consists of the Federal Senate or Senado Federal (81 seats; three members from each state or federal district elected according to the principle of majority to serve eight-year terms; one-third elected after a four year period, two-thirds elected after the next four-year period) and the Chamber of Deputies or CÃÂámara dos Deputados (513 seats; deputies are elected by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
Federal Senate - last held October 2002 for one-third of Senate (next to be held NA October 2002 for two-thirds of the Senate); Chamber of Deputies - last held 4 October 1998 (next to be held October 2007)
Federal Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PMDB 27, PFL 20, PSDB 16, PT 7, PPB 5, PSB 3, PDT 2, PPS 1; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PFL 106, PSDB 99, PMDB 82, PPB 60, PT 58, PTB 31, PDT 25, PSB 19, PL 12, PCdoB 7, other 14
Supreme Federal Tribunal, 11 judges are appointed for life by the president and confirmed by the Senate
Brazilian Democratic Movement Party or PMDB [Michel TEMER, president]; Brazilian Labor Party or PTB [Jose Carlos MARTINEZ, president]; Brazilian Social Democracy Party or PSDB [JosÃÂé ANIBAL Peres de Pontes, president]; Brazilian Socialist Party or PSB [Miguel ARRAES, president]; Brazilian Progressive Party or PPB [Paulo MALUF, president]; Communist Party of Brazil or PCdoB [Renato RABELO, president]; Democratic Labor Party or PDT [Leonel BRIZOLA, president]; Liberal Front Party or PFL [Jorge BORNHAUSEN, president]; Liberal Party or PL [Valdemar COSTA Neto, president]; Popular Socialist Party or PPS [Roberto FREIRE, president]; Worker's Party or PT [Jose GENOÃÂÃÂNO, president]
Left wing of the Catholic Church, Landless Worker's Movement, and labor unions pressure the government for more intense reforms on taxation and land property, while rightist PFL and PSDB are critical of government's social and economic policies.
AfDB, BIS, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMOP, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Green with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 27 white five-pointed stars (one for each state and the Federal District) arranged in the same pattern as the night sky over Brazil; the globe has a white equatorial band with the motto ORDEM E PROGRESSO (Order and Progress).
See also: Flag of Brazil
See also : Brazil, cafÃÂé com leite, coronelismo, history of Brazil, IntegralismGovernment
States are organized like the federal government, with three government branches. Because of the mandatory revenue allocation to states and municipalities provided for in the 1988 constitution, Brazilian governors and mayors have exercised considerable power since 1989. Principal Government Officials
Country name
conventional long form:
Federative Republic of Brazil
conventional short form:
Brazil
local long form:
RepÃÂública Federativa do Brasil
local short form:
BrasilGovernment type
Capital
Administrative divisions
Independence
National holiday
Constitution
Legal system
Suffrage
Executive branch
Head of State:
Luiz InÃÂácio Lula da Silva(since 1 January 2003); Vice President JosÃÂé Alencar Gomes da Silva (since 1 January 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government:
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva(since 1 January 2003); Vice President JosÃÂé Alencar Gomes da Silva (since 1 January 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet:
Cabinet appointed by the presidentElections
Election results
Legislative branch
Elections
(Please get new data!)Election results
Judicial branch
Political parties and leaders
Political pressure groups and leaders
International organization participation
Flag description