LAUSR

Politicians often buy votes with impunity. Brazil outlawed vote buying for many years, but prosecutions were rare. However, popular pressure mounted against the practice in the late 1990s. Over one million Brazilians signed a petition against vote buying, leading to the country’s first law by popular initiative passed by the national legislature. The law not only surmounted key obstacles to the popular initiative process but also dramatically increased prosecutions for clientelism during elections. Campaign handouts became the top reason that politicians were ousted in Brazil, with over a thousand removals from office. This study examines the role of civil society and the judiciary in the enactment and implementation of this important legislation. Resumo Os politicos frequentemente compram votos sem serem punidos. O Brasil proibiu a compra de votos por muitos anos, mas processos penais foram raros. No entanto, a pressao popular contra a pratica aumentou no final dos anos 90. Mais de um milhao de brasileiros assinaram uma peticao contra a compra de votos, levando a primeira lei do pais de iniciativa popular a ser aprovada pelo Congresso Nacional. Essa lei nao apenas superou os principais obstaculos do processo de iniciativa popular, mas tambem aumentou dramaticamente os processos por clientelismo eleitoral. A compra de votos se tornou a principal razao pela qual os politicos foram afastados no Brasil, com mais de mil cassacoes de mandatos. Este estudo examina o papel da sociedade civil e do judiciario na promulgacao e implementacao desta importante legislacao.