At stake in this election:

• 27 seats in the Federal Senate (Senado Federal)

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Luiz Inácio LULA DA SILVA *
• Head of Government: President Luiz Inácio LULA DA SILVA
• Assembly: Brazil has a bicameral National Congress (Congresso Nacional) consisting of the Federal Senate (Senado Federal) with 81 seats and the Chamber of Deputies (Camara dos Deputados) with 513 seats.

* The president is both the chief of state and head of government.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by absolute majority vote through a two-round system to serve a 4-year term.
• In the Federal Senate (Senado Federal) 81 members are elected by plurality vote in multi-member constituencies to serve 8-year terms*. In the Chamber of Deputies (Camara dos Deputados) 513 members are elected through an open-list proportional representation system to serve 4-year terms.**

* There are 27 multi-member (3 seats) constituencies corresponding to the country's 26 states and the Federal District. One-third of the senators (27 seats) are elected after a four-year period, and two-thirds (54 seats) are elected after the next four-year period. When two-thirds of the seats are to be renewed, each elector votes for two candidates. When one-third is to be renewed, each elector votes for one candidate.

** There are 27 multi-member constituencies with district magnitude ranging from 8 to 70 seats, based on population.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: Party of the Brazilian Democratic Movement / Partido do Movimento Democrático Brasileiro (PMDB)
  • Leader: Íris DE ARAUJO
• Party: Democrats / Democratas**
  • Leader: Rodrigo MAIA
• Party: Brazilian Social Democracy Party / Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira (PSDB)
  • Leader: Sérgio GUERRA
• Party: Workers' Party / Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT)
  • Leader: José José EDUARDO Dutra
• Party: Socialism and Freedom Party / Partido Socialismo e Liberdade (PSOL)
  • Leader: Heloísa HELENA
• Party: Brazilian Socialist Party / Partido Socialista Brasileiro (PSB)
  • Leader: Eduardo CAMPOS
• Party: Green Party / Partido Verde (PV)
  • Leader: José Luiz de França PENNA
• Party: Progressive Party / Partido Progressista (PP)
  • Leader: Francisco DORNELLES
• Alliance: Democratic Labour Party / Partido Democrático Trabalhista (PDT)
  • Leader: Carlos Eduardo Vieira DA CUNHA
• Party: Republic Party / Partido da República (PR)
  • Leader: Sérgio TAMER
• Party: Communist Party of Brazil / Partido Comunista do Brasil (PCDoB)
  • Leader: José Renato RABELO

** The Democrats were formally known as the Liberal Front Party/Partido del Frente Liberal (PFL)

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 201,103,330 (July 2010 )
• Registered Voters: 135,523,622 (October 2010 )

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 100,784,657 (2010)

·         Is Brazil a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (31 March 1981)

·         Has Brazil ratified CEDAW: Yes (1 February 1984)

·         Gender Quota: Yes

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 44 (Chamber of Deputies); 8 (Federal Senate) (following 2010 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 75 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Low (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Brazil a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has Brazil ratified CRPD: Yes (1 August 2008)

·         Population with a disability: 30,165,499 (est.)