President of Brazil
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The first president of Brazil was Deodoro da Fonseca, who proclaimed the republic in a military coup d'etât against the Emperor Dom Pedro II. Since then, Brazil had six constitutions, two dictatorships and three democratic periods. During these democratic periods, voting has always been compulsory.
The current president is Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, from the Partido dos Trabalhadores (Workers' Party), elected in 2002 for the 2003–2006 term, re-elected for the 2007–2010 term. He was the most voted president in the world until then, receiving 56.7 million votes. In the 2006 presidential elections held on October 1, 2006, he received 58.2 million votes.
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[edit] Presidential powers
As a presidential republic, Brazil grants significant powers to the President. He effectively controls the government, represents the country abroad, appoints the cabinet and judges for the Supreme Federal Tribunal.
Presidents in Brazil also have significant lawmaking powers, exercised either by proposing laws to the National Congress, or by using the instrument of the Medidas Provisórias, a law that comes into effect immediately, for a specific span of time, before the Congress can vote on it.
[edit] Requirements to hold office
According the 1988 Constitution, the president must be a native-born citizen of Brazil, be at least 35 years of age, be a resident in Brazil, be an elector, have all the electoral rights and be inscribed in a political party (write-in candidates are forbidden).
[edit] The length of the Term
Currently the president serves a four-year term with the possibility of reelection for just one more term sequentially. The reelection for executive posts has existed since 1997, when the Amendment nº 16 was passed. It was very controversial, because Fernando Henrique Cardoso, who was president at the time, was reelected.
[edit] History
- The Constitution of 1891 estabilished a four-year term and did not allow reelection for an immediately consecutive term.
- The 1934 Constitution estabilished a four-year term and did not allow reelection for an immediately consecutive term.
- The 1946 Constitution estabilished a five-year term and did not allow reelection for an immediately consecutive term.
- The 1967 Constitution estabilished a four-year term and did not allow reelection for an immediately consecutive term. The Amendment number 1 of 1969, referred to as the <<Constitution of 1969>> for having re-published the entire constitutional text with several changes, raised the duration of the presidential term to six years.
- The 1988 Constitution estabilished a five-year term and did not allow reelection for an immediately consecutive term; the term was shortened to four years in 1994 with the Amendment nº 5 of 1995, and the Amendment nº 16 of 1997 allowed a single reelection.
[edit] Latest election
| Candidates | Votes | % 1st round | Votes | % 2nd round |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luis Inácio Lula da Silva (PT, PL, PC do B, PMN, PCB, PV) | 39,436,099 | 46.4 | 52,772,475 | 61.3 |
| José Serra (PSDB, PMDB, PP) | 19,694,843 | 23.2 | 33,356,860 | 38.7 |
| Anthony Garotinho (PSB, PGT, PTC) | 15,176,204 | 17.9 | - | - |
| Ciro Gomes (PPS, PDT, PTB) | 10,166,324 | 12.0 | - | - |
| José Maria de Almeida (PSTU) | 402,236 | 0.5 | - | - |
| Rui Costa Pimenta (PCO) | 38,619 | 0.0 | - | - |
| Total (turnout 82.3 and 79.5 %) | 84,914,015 | 100 | 86,129,335 | 100 |
| Notes: party of the candidate, supporting parties, unofficial supporting parties | ||||
| Source: Banco de Dados Eleitorais do Brasil | ||||
| Candidates | Votes | % 1st round | Votes | % 2nd round |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT, PC do B, PRB, PL, PSB, PP) | 46,662,365 | 48.61 | 58,295,042 | 60.83 |
| Geraldo Alckmin (PSDB, PFL, PPS) | 39,968,369 | 41.64 | 37,543,178 | 39.17 |
| Heloísa Helena (P-SOL, PSTU, PCB) | 6,575,393 | 6.85 | - | - |
| Cristovam Buarque (PDT) | 2,538,844 | 2.64 | - | - |
| Ana Maria Rangel (PRP) | 126,404 | 0.13 | - | - |
| José Maria Eymael (PSDC) | 63,294 | 0.07 | - | - |
| Luciano Bivar (PSL) | 62,064 | 0.06 | - | - |
| Total (turnout 83.2 and ) | 95,996,733 | 100.00 | 95,838,220 | 100.00 |
| Notes: party of the candidate, supporting parties, unofficial supporting parties | ||||
| Source: Justiça Eleitoral | ||||
[edit] Additional information
The official residence of the president is the Palácio da Alvorada, designed by Oscar Niemeyer and located in Brasilia.
The official office of the president is the Palácio do Planalto, in the city center of Brasilia. Also designed by Niemeyer, the palace faces the Praça do Três Poderes (The Three Power Plaza), where the Palace of Justice and the National Congress are also located.
