Category: National Politics

Part 2 – 2018 Election Series: What Nobody Wants to Say about the Current Political Crisis in Brazil

by Marcello Bonatto, posted in 2018 election series, Events, National Politics

This article is part of Brazil Talk’s 2018 Elections Series  and is intended to give our readers a deeper understanding of the Brazilian political system, its complex electoral process and gather diverse perspectives and opinions on what the world should expect from Brazil in the upcoming months and the future of the country at the beginning of 2019. 

By Rodrigo R. Soares

[5 min read]

A lot has been said about the political fragmentation in the current pre-electoral scenario in Brazil. This fragmentation has been mostly interpreted as reflecting increased radicalization, and seen as a manifestation of the underlying political preferences of a significant fraction of society. It is undeniable that there has been an increased degree of political radicalization in Brazilian society and that this radicalization also manifests itself in the pre-electoral scenario. However,  I believe most of this fragmentation comes from the increasing lack of representativeness of the political system and its detachment from the demands and preferences of a major part of the Brazilian population.

The current fragmentation can find its closest historical precedent in the first direct presidential elections, in 1989, after the end of the military dictatorship, when over 20 candidates were registered in the first round –  5 of which got more than 8% of the votes, and, 7 got close to 5% or more. The worrisome difference with this precedent is that, then, despite the disappointing outcome of the election and the ensuing impeachment process, the country was coming out of a military dictatorship and there was a lot of faith in the democratic institutions and the recently born political system. In addition, an extensive and diversified gallery of leading figures in the fight against dictatorship offered political alternatives that seemed electorally feasible and morally legitimate. We no longer have the luxury of relying on figures anointed by history to exercise political leadership. This generation has passed, and the country must move on, willingly or not.

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Part 1 – 2018 Election Series: The Next General Elections in Brazil – Is Change Coming?

by Marcello Bonatto, posted in 2018 election series, National Politics

This article is part of Brazil Talk’s 2018 Elections Series  and is intended to give our readers a deeper understanding of the Brazilian political system, its complex electoral process and gather diverse perspectives and opinions on what the world should expect from Brazil in the upcoming months and the future of the country at the beginning of 2019. 

by Marcio Fortes

[3 min read]

Brazil’s upcoming elections will not be the first one to be held in the new Brazilian political system, as was expected. On the contrary, it will be the last one of the current political period – which began in 1982 when the first direct elections for governors took place after the military regime. The President of the Republic as well as Governors for the 26 States and the Federal District will be elected by a majority of votes on a two round system on two separate occasions provided no candidate gets a majority in the first round. Two Senators will be chosen for each State, by simple majority in a single round on the same day the President and Governors. On the same day, the elections for the Federal Chamber of Deputies and the 27 state Assemblies will take place. The members of these Assemblies will be chosen by a less than common system. The votes are counted in Party Lists, but given individually for the candidates- a system called Open Party List.

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Presidential Elections: Every Vote Counts!

by Brazil Talk, posted in Blog, National Politics, Uncategorized

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The Brazilian Fiscal Crisis: The Lost Credibility

by Marcello Bonatto, posted in Blog, Economy, National Politics

By Tatiana Acar

[7 min read]

 

Assessing how credibility affects both the economy and individuals in a tangible way is a complex issue in the economic debate. We can conceive the delicate concept of confidence through the image of a horse being trained to jump obstacles. In order to gain his trust, the athlete needs to show commitment and respect. With sufficient warning, the horse tends to follow his commands, and both will have a durable relationship. However, unexpectedly forcing it to jump will make the horse suspicious. If surprised, he can harm the athlete and destroy all the environment around him. Worse, once the trust is betrayed, it is hard to recover it. Brazil’s current crisis scenario could be linked to this metaphor since the fiscal misconduct seen in the last years has undermined the population’s confidence and generated great disarray among consumers, businesses, and investors. Output growth has fallen more than 7% in two years[1], causing unemployment more than doubling[2]. Recovering the lost development will consume a large part of Brazil’s next presidential term, which has been predicted by some analysts already[3]. But why has the country reached this stage? What is the relationship between credibility and the level of employment and income?

Credibility is built when people notice, over time, that the government has not only committed to the policy it communicated, but it has also managed to achieve its goals[4]. When a government spends continuously and increasingly, uncertainty about the country’s fiscal solvency tends to be higher. Thus, the effect of fiscal stimulus on the economy and individuals might become counterproductive by pushing up long-term interest rates, inflationary expectations and undermining longer-term growth prospects. This puts the government into a dangerous vicious circle, as the fall in the output causes a drop on tax revenues, further increasing the fiscal imbalance.

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Renca: Attacks From the Brazilian Government Put Reserve At Risk

by Brazil Talk, posted in Blog, Enviroment, National Politics

by Vera Ceccarello and Tatiana Massaro

“You do not know me and you’ve never seen me. You live in a distant land.”

(Davi Kopenawa, Yanomamishaman)

During the final months of 2017, the Amazon has once again taken center stage of debates in the media and in civil society. The trigger was a decree from the interim government of Michel Temer that would allow the private initiative to explore an area of 46 thousand square kilometers known as Renca (National Reserve of Copper and Associates) – First Decree 9.147, August 28, 2017 [i][1]. Continue reading “Renca: Attacks From the Brazilian Government Put Reserve At Risk” →