National Congress of Brazil

The National Congress of Brazil (Portuguese: Congresso Nacional do Brasil) is the legislative body of Brazil's federal government.

Unlike regional legislative bodies – Legislative Assemblies and City Councils -, the Congress is bicameral, composed of the Federal Senate (the upper house) and the Chamber of Deputies (the lower house).

The Senate represents the 26 states and the Federal District. Each State and the Federal District has a representation of three Senators, who are elected by popular ballot for a term of eight years. Every four years, renewal of either one third or two-thirds of the Senate (and of the delegations of the States and the Federal District) takes place. When one seat is up for election in each State, each voter casts one vote for the Senate; when two seats are up for election, each voter casts two votes, and the voter cannot give his two votes for the same candidate, but, in elections for the renewal of two-thirds of the Senate, each party can present two candidates for election. The candidate in each State and the Federal District (or the first two candidates, when two thirds of the seats are up for election) who achieve the greatest plurality of votes are elected.

The Chamber of Deputies represents the people of each state, and its members are elected for a four year term by a proportional representation. Unlike the Senate, the whole of the Chamber of Deputies is renewed every four years.

The Congress meets annually in its Brasília seat from 2 February to 27 July and from 1 August to 22 December.

Until recently, it was common for politicians to switch parties, and the proportion of congressional seats held by each party would often change. However, a decision of the Supremo Tribunal Federal has ruled that the seats belong to the parties and not to the politicians, and that one can only change parties and retain his seat in a very limited set of cases, so that now politicians who abandon the party for which they were elected face the loss of their Congressional seat.

Each house of the Brazilian Congress elects its President and the other members of its directing board from among its members.

The President of the Senate (currently Senator José Sarney) is ex officio the President of the National Congress, and in that capacity summons and presides over joint sessions, as well as over the joint services of both Houses.

However, the President of the Chamber (currently Marco Maia) is the third in the presidential line of succession, while the President of the Senate (and of Congress) ranks as fourth in line to the presidency of the Republic.