Brazilian general election, 1950

Brazilian presidential election, 1950

October 3, 1950 (1950-10-03)

Candidate Getúlio Vargas Eduardo Gomes Party PTB UDN Home state Rio Grande do Sul Rio de Janeiro Popular vote 3,849,040 2,342,384 Percentage 48.7% 29.7%

President before election Eurico Gaspar Dutra PSD Elected President Getúlio Vargas PTB

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General elections were held in Brazil on 3 October 1950.^[1] The presidential elections were won by Getúlio Vargas of the Brazilian Labour Party, whilst the Social Democratic Party remained the largest party in both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, although they lost their majority in the former. Voter turnout was 72.1% in the presidential election, 72.0% in the Chamber elections and 77.7% in the Senate elections.^[2]

Background

After living in self-imposed exile in his Riograndense ranch between his overthrow in 1945 and 1950, former President Getúlio Vargas decided to run for the Presidency, as the candidate of the Brazilian Labor Party (PTB), one of the two he founded after he decided to put an end to his 15-year dictatorship. Vargas, although in exile, remained active on the sidelines of Brazilian politics during the Presidency of his former War Minister, Eurico Gaspar Dutra. He notably criticized his successor's economic policies, taking a hard nationalist and populist tone which appealed to the base of the PTB, organized labour.

In April 1950, the Social Democratic Party, also pro-Vargas but based more around industrialists and state political machines, rejected the idea of forming a coalition with the PTB or the UDN and decided to run its own candidate. They nominated Cristiano Machado, a little-known congressman for Minas Gerais.

However, Vargas was able to forge an alliance with a number of PSD state leaders, notably in his own state of Rio Grande do Sul and in Rio de Janeiro. In Pernambuco, he even forged an alliance with his traditional rivals, the UDN. This phenomenon - to nominate a candidate and support another - became known as "cristianization" in Brazil. In the state of São Paulo, he forged an alliance with Adhemar de Barros' Social Progressive Party (PSP), a populist electoral machine who dominated state politics. The PSP was the only other party to officially endorse him, and provided him with his running-mate (who was separately elected), João Café Filho. Vargas also assured himself of the support, or at least approval, of the military which had deposed him in 1945. He reconciled himself with the dominant figure of the military then, Góes Monteiro, who had played a role in his 1945 overthrow.^[3]

The right-wing National Democratic Union (UDN), noted for its radical anti-Vargas posture, once again nominated Eduardo Gomes as its candidate. The party proved woefully unable to expand its narrow electoral base, and not even the anti-Vargas rhetoric of 1945 could deliver more votes. The UDN and Gomes also proved their little comprehension of the evolving Brazilian political scene by supporting abolishing the minimum wage instituted in Vargas' past administration.^[4]

During the Eurico Gaspar Dutra administration, the Brazilian Communist Party had its license revoked by the Supreme Electoral Court in the context of the early Cold War. Communists oriented their followers not to vote, but a significant share of them voted on Vargas.

Presidential candidates

• Former President Getúlio Vargas of Rio Grande do Sul (PTB)
• Former Air Minister Eduardo Gomes of Rio de Janeiro (UDN)
• Congressman Cristiano Machado of Minas Gerais (PSD)
• João Mangabeira (PSB)

Results

President

Vargas won a convincing victory, with 48.7% of the vote and close to an absolute majority of votes cast. Despite the UDN's claim that he was not constitutionally elected (they claimed that a candidate needed an absolute majority of the votes), Vargas was inaugurated President in January 1951.^[5]

Vice-President

Chamber of Deputies

Senate

References

External links

• Database of Brazilian elections

Elections and referendums in Brazil Presidential elections (1891) 1894 1898 1902 1906 1910 1914 1918 1919 1922 1926 1930 (1934) 1945 1950 1955 1960 (1964) (1966) (1969) (1974) (1978) (1985) 1989 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 Parliamentary elections 1823 1826 1830 1834 1842 1843 1845 1848 1850 1853 1857 1861 1864 1867 1869 1872 1877 1878 1882 1885 1886 1890 1894 1896 1899 1903 1906 1909 1912 1915 1918 1927 1930 1933 1934 1945 1947 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 Municipal elections 1985 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 Referendums 1963 1993 2005 Elections in brackets were indirect