Part 1: A Divided City
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Part 1: A Divided City
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Notes:
Part 1: A Divided City
Throughout practicaly all of Porto Alegre's republican history, most of its inhabitants had very little say in how the capital of the state of Rio Grande do Sul was run. During the Old Republic, its mayors, like pretty much all other politicians of the period, took power through fraudulent elections, an environment which reached its logical conclusion with the rise and administration of José Montaury, who ran the city for 27 years straight and was reelected seven times, five of which as the only candidate on the ballot (1). The years that succeeded the Revolution of 1930 weren't that much better regarding political rights either, since even though the citizens freely elected their councillors in the periods between 1934 to 1937 (when the Estado Novo began and all legislatures were abolished) and from 1947 onward (two years after democracy was restored), the mayor was still appointed by the state governor.
That would end in 1951.
For the first time ever, the chief of the executive of the city would be elected by the people, and there were two men who desired to become the first to receive such an honor.
That would end in 1951.
For the first time ever, the chief of the executive of the city would be elected by the people, and there were two men who desired to become the first to receive such an honor.
The first candidate was Ildo Meneghetti. Born in 1895 to two Italian immigrants, Meneghetti became an engineer and entrepreneur, his career as an elected official only beginning in 1947 when he was elected to the City Council as a member of PSD (the Social Democratic Party, which was quite conservative despite its name). One year after that, he was appointed to the mayoralty by governor Walter Jobim, serving until February 1951, when Jobim's successor, Ernesto Dornelles, removed him. Not only did his mayoral tenure, which was marked by multiple important infrastructure and social housing projects, turn him into someone who was fondly remembered by the people, he had before that been president of Sport Club Internacional (one of Rio Grande do Sul's major football teams, together with its arch-rival Grêmio), which enhanced his fame and popularity.
His adversary was Leonel Brizola. Born in 1922 (being, therefore, almost thirty years younger than Meneghetti) to a poor peasant family in what is now the municipality of Carazinho, Brizola lost his father at a very young age to one of the many civil wars and rebellions that shook RS during the Old Republic, which worsened the hardships he and his relatives had to face during his childhood. Taking on a variety of menial jobs after moving to Porto Alegre, such as polishing shoes, he eventually graduated in civil engineering, but never worked in the field since he immediately entered electoral politics by campaigning for and winning a seat in the State Assembly in 1947. A member of PTB (the Brazilian Labour Party), he was easily reelected in 1950 and became a rising star in the party. Young, handsome and extremely charismatic, Brizola was backed by president Getúlio Vargas and, most importantly, governor Ernesto Dornelles.
It didn't take long for the race to take national proportions. The UDN (National Democratic Union), the strongest and most radical opposition party, endorsed Meneghetti in the hope of handing the president a stinging and very personal defeat in the capital of his home state. On the other side, governor Dornelles used the state's public apparatus to give Brizola an unfair advantage, a practice that, although already illegal at the time, was so common that no one batted an eye. The campaign went on for months and mobilized huge crowds for both sides, and a growing feeling of uneasiness descended upon the city as election day approached.
Until November 1 finally arrived, and scores upon scores of voters went to their polling stations to cast their ballots in secret. No one had any idea of who would win, since opinion polls weren't a thing back then and both candidates had run very good campaigns. Hours later, the poll workers began to count the thousands of votes that had been cast one by one, and the numbers were slowly announced by radio news stations piece by piece. As the time passed, however, one thing became clear: Brizola and Meneghetti were only a few hundred votes away from each other, a microscopic difference considering that Porto Alegre's electorate numbered in the tens of thousands.
Hours became days, and soon enough the entire country was biting its nails in anticipation. The final result was announced on November 9, eight days after the election took place, and they showed just how polarized the capital of Rio Grande do Sul was:
It didn't take long for the race to take national proportions. The UDN (National Democratic Union), the strongest and most radical opposition party, endorsed Meneghetti in the hope of handing the president a stinging and very personal defeat in the capital of his home state. On the other side, governor Dornelles used the state's public apparatus to give Brizola an unfair advantage, a practice that, although already illegal at the time, was so common that no one batted an eye. The campaign went on for months and mobilized huge crowds for both sides, and a growing feeling of uneasiness descended upon the city as election day approached.
Until November 1 finally arrived, and scores upon scores of voters went to their polling stations to cast their ballots in secret. No one had any idea of who would win, since opinion polls weren't a thing back then and both candidates had run very good campaigns. Hours later, the poll workers began to count the thousands of votes that had been cast one by one, and the numbers were slowly announced by radio news stations piece by piece. As the time passed, however, one thing became clear: Brizola and Meneghetti were only a few hundred votes away from each other, a microscopic difference considering that Porto Alegre's electorate numbered in the tens of thousands.
Hours became days, and soon enough the entire country was biting its nails in anticipation. The final result was announced on November 9, eight days after the election took place, and they showed just how polarized the capital of Rio Grande do Sul was:
- Leonel de Moura Brizola - 41.271 votes;
- Ildo Meneghetti - 40.823 votes.
Brizola, who was just 448 votes ahead of Meneghetti, became the first democractically elected mayor of Porto Alegre (2). He was inaugurated in January 1, 1952, days away from his thirtieth birthday, and soon after he set about fulfilling the enormous task ahead of him: not only did he have to urgently heal the huge political divide caused by the election, but he needed to tackle the multiple chronic issues the capital of the gaúchos suffered from (lack of schools, insufficient infrastructure and public sanitation, among others) head on.
After receiving news of the young man's victory, Getúlio supposedly remarked to an aide: "Ha, I knew that kid would go far!"
He would go very far indeed.
After receiving news of the young man's victory, Getúlio supposedly remarked to an aide: "Ha, I knew that kid would go far!"
He would go very far indeed.
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Notes:
(1) Montaury's counterpart in the state level was Borges de Medeiros, a dictator who ruled Rio Grande do Sul with an iron fist from 1898 to 1928, when he finally stepped down and was succeeded as governor by Getúlio Vargas.
(2) This is the POD. IOTL Brizola lost to Meneghetti by around one thousand votes. He would eventually become mayor in 1955, governor of RS in 1958, and the rest is history. Here, his political career is sped up significantly.
So this is my second TL focusing on Brazil, and just like my first one, Brizola will be a central character in it. I'm more mature now than I was two years ago (when the first TL was written) so hopefully this one's writing will be better since my first work left a bad taste in my mouth because, looking back, it was too much like a "guys I like win, guys I dislike lose" scenario.
(2) This is the POD. IOTL Brizola lost to Meneghetti by around one thousand votes. He would eventually become mayor in 1955, governor of RS in 1958, and the rest is history. Here, his political career is sped up significantly.
So this is my second TL focusing on Brazil, and just like my first one, Brizola will be a central character in it. I'm more mature now than I was two years ago (when the first TL was written) so hopefully this one's writing will be better since my first work left a bad taste in my mouth because, looking back, it was too much like a "guys I like win, guys I dislike lose" scenario.
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