THE NEW REPUBLIC
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Plebiscite - The Constitution of 1988 ordered a plebiscite to define the form of government (republic or constitutional monarchy) and its system (parliamentarianism or presidentialism) and established that the President and the Governors, as well as the mayors of the municipalities with over 200 thousand voters, should be elected by an absolute majority of votes, or in two rounds if no candidate obtained an absolute majority in the first voting.

In the municipalities with less than 200 thousand voters, the heads of the Executive power were to be chosen by a simple majority, in a single round. The Constitution also established the 5-year presidential mandate, prohibiting their reelection for the subsequent period, and fixed a period of six months before the heads of the Executive (federal, state or municipal) could take over new offices.

In order to avoid casuistries, the Constitutional Amendment No. 4/1993 ordered that the law changing the electoral process should be applied only a year after its promulgation.

The Constitutional Amendment of Revision No. 5/1994 reduced the presidential mandate period to four years, and the Amendment No. 16/1997 allowed the reelection of the heads of the Executive power for one subsequent period. Through the approval of Law No. 9.504/1997, the government sought to initiate a phase in which norms for elections endured.