Brazilian President
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The president of Brazil (), officially the president of the Federative Republic of Brazil () or simply the ''President of the Republic'', is the
head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...
and
head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...
of
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
. The president leads the
executive branch The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...
of the
federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...
and is the commander-in-chief of the
Brazilian Armed Forces The Brazilian Armed Forces (, ) are the unified Military, military forces of the Brazil, Federative Republic of Brazil. Consisting of three Military branch, service branches, it comprises the Brazilian Army (including the Brazilian Army Aviati ...
. The
presidential system A presidential, strong-president, or single-executive system (sometimes also congressional system) is a form of government in which a head of government (usually titled " president") heads an executive branch that derives its authority and l ...
was established in 1889, upon the proclamation of the republic in a military coup d'état against Emperor Pedro II. Since then, Brazil has had six
constitutions A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...
, three dictatorships, and three democratic periods. The
Constitution of Brazil The Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil () is the Constitution, supreme law of Brazil. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of Brazil and the federal government of Brazil. It replaced the ...
, along with several constitutional amendments, establishes the requirements, powers, and responsibilities of the president, their term of office and the method of election.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (; born Luiz Inácio da Silva; 27 October 1945), known Mononym, mononymously as Lula, is a Brazilian politician, trade unionist and former metalworker who has served as the 39th president of Brazil since 2023. A mem ...
is the 39th and current president. He was sworn in on 1 January 2023.


Constitutional powers

As a republic with a presidential executive, Brazil grants significant powers to the president, who effectively controls the executive branch, represents the country abroad, and appoints the cabinet and, with the approval of the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
, the judges for the Supreme Federal Court. The president is also the commander-in-chief of the
armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...
. Presidents in Brazil have significant lawmaking powers, exercised either by proposing laws to the National Congress or by using (
provisional measure A provisional measure () is a legal act in Brazil through which the President of Brazil can, "in important and urgent cases", enact law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions t ...
s), an instrument with the force of law that the president can enact in cases of urgency and necessity except to make changes to some areas of law (provisional measures cannot be used to change criminal law or electoral law). A provisional measure comes into effect immediately, before Congress votes on it, and remains in force for up to 60 days unless Congress votes to rescind it. The 60-day period can be extended once, up to 120 days. If Congress, on the other hand, votes to approve the provisional measure, it becomes an actual law, with changes decided by the legislative branch. The provisional measure expires at the end of the 60-day period (or the 120-day, in the case of extension), or sooner, if rejected by one of the Houses of Congress. Article 84 of the current Federal Constitution, determines that the president has the power to # appoint and dismiss the ministers of state; # exercise, with the assistance of the ministers of state, the higher management of the federal administration; # initiate the legislative procedure, in the manner and in the cases set forth in the Constitution; # sanction, promulgate, and order the publication of laws, as well as issue decrees and regulations for the true enforcement thereof; # veto bills, wholly or in part; # provide, by means of decree, on organization and structure of federal administration if there is neither increase of expenses nor creation or extinction of public agencies; and extinction of offices or positions, when vacant; # maintain relations with foreign States and to accredit their diplomatic representatives; # conclude international treaties, conventions and acts, subject to the ratification of the
National Congress of Brazil The National Congress () is the legislative body of Brazil's federal government. Unlike the state legislative assemblies and Câmara Municipal, municipal chambers, the Congress is bicameral, composed of the Federal Senate (Brazil), Federal Sena ...
; # decree the state of defense and the state of siege, in accordance with the constitutional procedures that precede and authorize those emergency decrees; # decree and enforce federal intervention, in accordance with the constitutional procedures that precede and authorize such exceptional action; # upon the opening of the legislative session, send a government message and plan to the National Congress, describing the state of the nation and requesting the actions he deems necessary; # grant pardons and reduce sentences, after hearing the entities instituted by law, if necessary; # exercise the supreme command of the armed forces, appoint the commanders of navy, army and air force, promote general officers and to appoint them to the offices held exclusively by them; # appoint, after approval by the Federal Senate, the Justices of the Supreme Federal Court and those of the superior courts, the Governors of the territories, the Prosecutor General of the Republic, the president and the directors of the Central Bank and other civil servants, when established by law; # appoint, with due regard for the provisions of Article 73, the Justices of the Court of Accounts of the Union; # appoint judges in the events established by this constitution and the Attorney General of the Union; # appoint members of the Council of the Republic, in accordance with article 89, VII; # summon and preside over the Council of the Republic and the National Defense Council; # declare war, in the event of foreign aggression, authorized by the National Congress or confirmed by it, whenever it occurs between legislative sessions and, under the same conditions, to decree full or partial national mobilization; # make peace, authorized or confirmed by the National Congress; # award decorations and honorary distinctions; # permit, in the cases set forth by supplementary law, foreign forces to pass through the national territory, or to remain temporarily therein; # submit to the National Congress the pluriannual plan, the bill of budgetary directives and the budget proposals set forth in this constitution; # render, each year, accounts to the National Congress concerning the previous fiscal year, within sixty days of the opening of the legislative session; # fill and abolish federal government positions, as set forth by law; # issue provisional measures, with force of law, according to Article 62; # perform other duties set forth in the constitution.


Election


Requirements

The
Constitution of Brazil The Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil () is the Constitution, supreme law of Brazil. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of Brazil and the federal government of Brazil. It replaced the ...
requires that a president be a native-born citizen of Brazil, at least 35 years of age, a resident of Brazil, in full exercise of their electoral rights, a registered voter, and a member of a
political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...
(
write-in A write-in candidate is a candidate whose name does not appear on the ballot but seeks election by asking voters to cast a vote for the candidate by physically writing in the person's name on the ballot. Depending on electoral law it may be poss ...
or independent candidates are prohibited).


Term limits

The president of Brazil serves for a term of four years, and may be re-elected for a single consecutive term. This two-term limit, however, is not for life—a former president who has served for two consecutive terms may run for the presidency again after at least one term has elapsed. A
vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
or other officer who succeeds to the presidency or who serves, albeit briefly, as
acting president An acting president is a person who temporarily fills the role of a country's president when the incumbent president is unavailable (such as by illness or visiting abroad) or when the post is vacant (such as for death Death is the en ...
during a certain presidential term may subsequently be elected or reelected to the presidency only once, as the consecutive term limit already applies. In practice, Brazilian vice-presidents almost always serve as acting president at some point during a presidential term, given that, according to the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
, the vice-president becomes acting president during the president's travels abroad.


Running for other offices

A sitting president (or governor or mayor) who wishes to run for a different office, regardless of the intended jurisdiction or branch of government, must resign from office at least six months before election day.


History

The possibility of reelection was established by the 16th Amendment to the Constitution, in 1997. Before that, presidents had been barred from immediate reelection for all of Brazil's republican history, with the single exception of the latter half of the Vargas Era, from 1937 to 1945. The office was limited to men until the 1937 Constitution. Under the original text of the 1988 Constitution the presidential term lasted 5 years, but it was reduced to 4 years in 1994 by a constitutional amendment.


Compensation and privileges of office

As of 2015,Diário da União publica reajuste de salários de parlamentares, presidente e ministros ("Brazilian 'Federal Register' publishes a pay raise for senators, representatives, president and ministries")
'' Estado de Minas'', ''
Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte is the List of largest cities in Brazil, sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population of around 2.3 million, and the third largest metropolitan area, containing a population of 6 million. It is the List of cities in Sout ...
'', 19 December 2014. Retrieved on 29 May 2018.
the president receives a monthly salary of R$30,934.70, along with an undisclosed expense account to cover travel, goods and services while in office. Given that in Brazil all private and public sector employees and civil servants receive an additional compensation equivalent to one monthly salary after a year of work (this compensation is known as the ''thirteenth salary''), the president receives 13 payments per year, resulting in an annual salary of R$402,151.10. The
Palácio do Planalto The Palácio do Brazilian Highlands, Planalto () in Brasília is the official workplace of the president of Brazil.
in
Brasília Brasília ( ; ) is the capital city, capital of Brazil and Federal District (Brazil), Federal District. Located in the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region, it was founded by President Juscelino ...
is the official workplace of the president and the '' Palácio da Alvorada'' their official residence. The president is entitled to use its staff and facilities. The '' Residência Oficial do Torto'', popularly known as ''Granja do Torto'', is a ranch located on the outskirts of the capital and is used as a country retreat by the president. The '' Palácio Rio Negro'' in Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro, is a summer retreat of the president, although used rarely. The official residence of the
vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
is the Jaburu Palace in
Brasília Brasília ( ; ) is the capital city, capital of Brazil and Federal District (Brazil), Federal District. Located in the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region, it was founded by President Juscelino ...
. In the 2000s, the federal government decided to establish ''Regional Offices of the Presidency of the Republic'' in certain key Brazilian cities. Those regional offices are not presidential residences, but they are fully staffed offices ready to receive the president and his ministers at any time, and they function as a presidential workplace when the president is in those cities. The first regional office of the presidency was established in the city of São Paulo, and is located at the Banco do Brasil building at the
Paulista Avenue Paulista Avenue (Avenida Paulista in Portuguese language, Portuguese, ''Paulistas, Paulista'' being the demonym for those born in the state of State of São Paulo, São Paulo) is one of the most important avenues in São Paulo (city), São Paulo, ...
; the building also houses Banco do Brasil's regional headquarters in São Paulo. The presidency of the republic also maintains regional offices in
Porto Alegre Porto Alegre (, ; , ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian Federative units of Brazil, state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population of roughly 1.4 million inhabitants (2022) makes it the List of largest cities in Brazil, 11th-most p ...
and in
Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte is the List of largest cities in Brazil, sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population of around 2.3 million, and the third largest metropolitan area, containing a population of 6 million. It is the List of cities in Sout ...
. For ground travel, the president uses the presidential state car, which is an armored version of the 2024 Chery Tiggo 8 Max Drive. A 1952 Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith is used by the president on ceremonial occasions, such as Independence Day commemorations, state visits and the
inauguration In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inau ...
of the president-elect. The presidential aircraft is a military version of an Airbus A330-200, called KC-30. Two modified Embraer 190 jets, air force designation VC-2, are used for short and medium range presidential travel. When the president is on board, the aircraft receive the call sign " Brazilian Air Force One".FAB 001 – O Avião Presidencial
DefesaBR. Retrieved on 27 May 2011. .
Two modified military versions of the Eurocopter Super Puma, air force designation VH-34, are currently used as the main presidential helicopters.''Helicóptero Presidencial Brasileiro (VH-34 Super Puma VIP)'' ("Brazilian Presidential Helicopter (VH-34 Super Puma VIP))"
Hangar20. Retrieved on 27 May 2011. .
File:Palácio do Planalto GGFD8938.jpg, ''
Palácio do Planalto The Palácio do Brazilian Highlands, Planalto () in Brasília is the official workplace of the president of Brazil.
'' File:Homologação do tombamento de obras do Niemeyer (34321040524).jpg, '' Palácio da Alvorada'' File:Brasíia-DF, 29-06-2011. Palácio do Jaburu. (14261300971).jpg,
Palácio do Jaburu The Jaburu Palace () is the official residence of the vice president of Brazil. The building was designed, along with the rest of the city of Brasília, by Oscar Niemeyer and inaugurated in 1977. It is located near the Palácio da Alvorada, Alvora ...
File:Residencia Oficial do Torto.jpg, '' Residência Oficial do Torto'' File:President's Summer home, Rio Negro Palace, Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro.jpg, '' Palácio Rio Negro'' File:Rolls-Royce Presidencial.jpg, Ceremonial state car File:Flag hoisting ceremony at the Planalto Palace (cropped).jpg, The Presidential state car of Brazil File:Embraer VC-2, Brazil - Air Force JP6903556.jpg, Secondary presidential aircraft (VC-2) File:Helicoptero-presidencial-brasil-2020(cortado).jpg, Presidential helicopter (VH-34 and VH-36)


Removal

The president may be removed from officeConstitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil 1988
- SECTION III - LIABILITY OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC (English translation)
using one of two procedures. In either case, two-thirds of the
Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...
must accept charges against the officeholder (
impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...
); and if the Senate accepts the investigation, the president is suspended from exercising the functions of office for up to 180 days. In the case of "common criminal offenses", a trial then takes place at the Supreme Federal Court. In the case of "crimes of malversation", which must fall into one of seven broad areas and which is defined in more detail in law, a trial takes place at the Federal Senate. During the trial, the vice president exercises executive power. If the trial does not result in a conviction within 180 days, the president resumes office; a conviction results in removal from office and succession by the vice president. The seven areas are: # The existence of the Union # The free exercise of the Legislative Power, the Judicial Power, the Public Prosecution and the constitutional Powers of the units of the Federation # The exercise of political, individual and social rights # The internal security of the country # Probity in the administration # The budgetary law # Compliance with the laws and with court decisions


Post-presidency

The following privileges are guaranteed to former presidents by law: *Permanent security protection (by the presidential guard – '' Batalhão da Guarda Presidencial'') *The use of two official vehicles (for life) *Repository funding for a presidential library *Lifelong monthly pension for their widows and unmarried daughters *Pension for sons of deceased ex-presidents until they come of age


Office-holders

All presidents of Brazil have borne the title ''President of the Republic''. That title has been used by all the constitutions of Brazil since the proclamation of the Republic to refer to the head of the Executive Branch. However, from the proclamation of the Republic in 1889 until 1937 the country was officially styled ''Republic of the United States of Brazil'', and from 1937 to 1967 the country was styled simply ''The United States of Brazil'', and thus the full title of the presidents of the Republic from 1891 until 1967—that is, from Deodoro da Fonseca's inauguration as President (between 1889 and 1891 he served as Head of the Provisional Government) until the end of Humberto Castello Branco's term in 1967—was ''President of the Republic of the United States of Brazil''. On 15 March 1967, the country's official name was changed to ''Federative Republic of Brazil''. On that same date, Arthur da Costa e Silva was sworn in as President succeeding Castello Branco. Since Costa e Silva, therefore, all presidents of Brazil have borne the full title of ''President of the Federative Republic of Brazil''.


Latest election


See also

* List of presidents of Brazil * Brazilian presidential inauguration * Politics of Brazil * Cabinet of Brazil *
Vice President of Brazil The vice president of Brazil (), officially the vice president of the Federative Republic of Brazil (''Vice-Presidente da República Federativa do Brasil''), or simply the ''vice president of the republic'' (''Vice-Presidente da República'') i ...
* Brazilian Air Force One *
Presidential Guard Battalion (Brazil) The Presidential Guard Battalion (, BGP), also known as Duke of Caxias Battalion (''Batalhão Duque de Caxias''), or by its historical designation Emperor's Battalion (''Batalhão do Imperador''), is a unit of the Brazilian Army and honour guard ...


References


External links


Official website of the Presidency of the Republic
{{Authority control 1889 establishments in Brazil Executive branch of Brazil
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...