Brazil has a multi-party system since 1979, when the country's military dictatorship disbanded an enforced two-party system and allowed the creation of multiple parties.[1]
Above the broad range of political parties in Brazilian Congress, the Workers' Party (PT), the Brazilian Democratic Movement (MDB), the Liberal Party (PL), the Progressives (PP) and the Brazil Union (UNIÃO) together control the absolute majority of seats in the Senate and Chamber of Deputies.[2] Smaller parties often make alliances with at least one of these five major parties.[3] The number of political parties reached the apex of 35 on 2018, 30 of which were represented in congress after the 2018 general election.[4][5][6] However, an electoral threshold introduced on 2017 has resulted in the culling and merger of many parties, as it cuts access to party subsidies and free party political broadcasts.[4][7]
Brazilian parties have access to party subsidies in form of the Fundo Partidário (lit. 'Party Fund') and the Fundo Eleitoral (lit. 'Electoral Fund') for elections.[8] And a system of free party political broadcasts during election time known as the horário eleitoral gratuito.[9]
Since 1982, Brazilian political parties have been given an electoral number to make it easier for illiterate people to vote. Initially, it was a one-digit number: 1 for PDS, 2 for PDT, 3 for PT, 4 for PTB, and 5 for PMDB. When it became clear that there was going to be more than nine parties, two-digit numbers were assigned, with the first five parties having a "1" added to their former one-digit number (PDS becoming number 11, PDT 12, PT 13, PTB 14, and PMDB 15). Political parties often change their names, but they can retain their number.
In terms of association, parties can form electoral coalitions and party federations. Since 2017, coalitions are only allowed in elections under the majority system. Therefore, political parties can unite in support for a presidential or senatorial candidate, for example. However, parties cannot form coalitions for the election of federal deputies, state deputies and councillors.[10] Coalitions are formed before the elections and do not oblige parties to remain together afterwards.[11] Party federations, on the other hand, are legally different from coalitions in that they are longer-lasting, have a national scope and require ideological unity. Unlike coalitions, the parties that make up a federation are treated as a single party in legislative activity and in elections; they are prohibited from acting independently in the legislative houses or from filing election-related lawsuits, as the federation has the sole legal standing to do so.[12]
This list presents the parties of the current Sixth Republic that were once recognized by the Superior Electoral Court, but have ceased to exist. The existence of all these parties has ended by the result of mergers.
This list presents the parties that never reached the Sixth Republic. Due to the large number of parties that were dissolved, especially during the First and Second Republics, it is not intended to be an exhaustive list.