1. Brazil: the 1988 Constitution
Representative Democracy under the Center-Right?

5. CONSTITUTION OF 1988
Three branches of government – executive, legislative, and judicial.
The distribution of power, the limits on the states and governmental authority, and how policy is framed and executed changed substantially under constitution.

6. 1988 constitution continues over- representation of small states
Half of tax revenue returned to states with no mandates as to how money will be spent
Assists in maintaining clientilism at local level
Congressmen tasked with “bringing home the bacon”
Implications of Itamar Franco’s challenge (as Governor of Minas Gerias) to the national executive 6
Robust Federalism

7. Institutions of the 1988 Republic
Patterned on U.S. Constitution’s separation of powers
President elected directly by people
Bicameral Congress
Chamber of Deputies (513 members)
Senate: Three members from each state and the Federal District (81 members)
Supreme Court (power of judicial review)
Institutions of the 1988 Republic

8. Presidential Election of 1994
Itamar Franco as a caretaker president
Another accidental presidency
Fernando Henrique Cardoso as architect of economic recovery {Real Plan}
Resounding victory by Henrique Cardoso: Two rounds permitted only one necessary
Presidential Election of 1994

9. 1994 Election Results

10. President Fernando Henrique Carsodo
Rio de Janeiro native
Son of an Army officer
Spent much of the military regime in exile

11. Presidential Election of 1998
Again Fernando Henrique Cardoso
One Round Only
Luis Inacio “Lula” de Silva 32%
Cardoso 53%
Winning coalition
Social Democrats (PSDB)
Liberal Front (PFL) party of Jose Sarney
Labor Party (PTB) party of Ivette Vargas
Presidential Election of 1998

12. 1998 Election Results

13. The Presidency and the Congress
Formal powers among the most sweeping in Latin America
Veto legislation (wholly or in part)
Can initiate legislation – including public spending
Can force congress to take up legislation deemed urgent
Multi-party system forces president to build coalitions
The Presidency and the Congress

14. Legislative Branch: Institutions & Structures
Lower house, the Chamber of Deputies: comprises 513 representatives from 26 states and the Federal District
Size of each state’s delegation is determined in proportion to its population.
Constitution establishes a minimum of eight and a maximum of seventy deputies for each state.
These limits under-represents residents of the densely populated southeastern and southern states.
Congress no longer a rubber stamp.
Parliamentary Commissions of Inquiry (CPIs)
Legislative Branch: Institutions & Structures

16. Institutions & Structures: The Judiciary I
Comprised of the Supreme Court, the Superior Court, five regional federal appeals courts, labor courts, electoral courts, military courts, and state courts.
Constitution stipulates criteria for
Entry into judicial service = competitive exam
Promotion = by seniority and merit
Mandatory retirement = age of 70 or after 30 years of service
Eleven justices, or “ministers,” are named by the president to the Supreme (constitutional Court, - Supremo Tribunal Federal (STP) –and approved by the Senate, as are thirty-three ministers to the Superior (Civil) Court.
Tribunal Superior Eleitoral
Institutions & Structures: The Judiciary I

17. Institutions & Structures: The Judiciary II
Labor Courts created by the Consolidated Labor Code of 1943
Military justice system also retained in the 1988 Constitution
Courts stronger today than every before
Overloaded docket
Lower courts’ decisions are not binding or final, cases are appealed repeatedly until they finally reach the STF.
Direct action of unconstitutionality (ADIN)
Institutions & Structures: The Judiciary II

18. Constitutional Limitations on Government Authority I
Extends the traditional guarantees of individual rights to social groups
Prohibits discrimination against minorities
Grants parties, unions, and civic associations legal recourse against the actions of other social actors and permits them to challenge before the Supreme Court the constitutionality of legislation and administrative rulings.
Constitutional Limitations on Government Authority I

19. Constitutional Limitations on Government Authority
Presidential limits when invoking a state of siege
Judicial review
Ministerio Publico (Public Prosecution)
Tribunal de Contas
Constitutional Limitations on Government Authority