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Women’s suffrage in Brazil a victory over historical misogyny
Over 135 years later, this violent rhetoric resurfaced. “Statistically, women vote poorly, especially single women. Married women tend to follow their husbands’ lead,” stated influencer Paulo Figueiredo (grandson of former Brazilian President João Figueiredo).
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An ongoing struggle
On the other hand, the history of the suffragist movement is a valuable source of inspiration for present-day action. “The language has changed, but the patriarchal, misogynistic, and sexist logic remains the same,” said law professor Fernanda Abreu of the State University of Rio Grande do Norte (UERN).
She emphasizes that women’s suffrage in Brazil was an achievement won against the resistance of the government and a sexist society. It was not a spontaneous concession. “Rights do not sustain themselves. They require a permanent struggle,” she noted.
Professor Abreu notes that these statements questioning women’s suffrage resurfaced in 2026 with “disturbing” force.
“It seems absurd, but it’s true. From a legal and constitutional standpoint, any discourse that questions women’s suffrage in Brazil violates Article 14 of the 1988 Constitution, which establishes universal suffrage without distinction based on sex,” she stated.
She adds that the rhetoric also attacks Article 5, which prohibits any form of discrimination. In addition to being unconstitutional, those remarks could also fall under criminal speech. The specialist noted that there are efforts underway to involve Brazil’s Prosecutor-General’s Office in addressing the issue.
The researcher points out that utterances like that of influencer Paulo Figueiredo are directly linked to the anti-feminist movement in the US, which openly advocates for the end of women’s suffrage.
Outstanding intelligence
From a historical perspective, researcher Cibele Tenório, of the University of Brasília (UnB), points out that the recurrence of such attacks over more than a century is “absurd,” but not surprising given the structural nature of sexism.
“The suffragists of the 20th century put up a real fight and demonstrated outstanding intelligence to secure this right for all of us,” she stated.
A journalist and doctoral candidate in history, Tenório is the biographer of Brazilian suffragist Almerinda Gama (1899–1999). Gama was one of the first black women to be active in Brazilian politics.
Tenório argues that, in the face of attacks that continue to this day, one must remain vigilant against any and all threats, even if they do not materialize into a real proposal to revoke women’s rights. However, gender-based offensives may be part of a strategy to block progress on rights.
“But they can, in some way, cause discomfort or discourage participation, which is dangerous.” She recalls that, in 1890, the Brazilian Constituent Assembly rejected women’s suffrage, claiming that women were unfit for politics.
Resistance
In 2026, in a nation where women account for more than 53 percent of the electorate, attacking the female vote also amounts to a strategy of political intimidation, researchers point out.
According to the country’s Superior Electoral Court, over 83 million Brazilian women will be eligible to vote in 2026. The number of eligible male voters stands at nearly 75 million. In terms of formal education, most women have graduated from high school (29.28 percent, compared to 26.35 percent of men). Among female voters, 13.08 percent have graduated from college (compared to 9.1 percent of men).
Here is a landscape of resistance: Women make up the majority of the Brazilian population (51.5%), yet they have their rights undermined and they are discouraged from entering the labor market or participating in politics. As Professor Hildete Pereira, a researcher in economics and gender studies at the Federal University of Fluminense (UFF), explains, the struggle is not a simple one because, in Brazil, women are encouraged to take on the role of caregivers rather than representatives.
Ethnically, of the women who will vote this year, 51.76 percent are pardo, 10.96 percent are black, and 35.71 percent are white. Further official data show that half of female voters identified as single.
Spaces of violence
The experts note that Brazil’s first republican constitution, promulgated in 1891, explicitly rejected women’s suffrage on the grounds that women were intellectually incapable of public life and should confine themselves to the domestic sphere.
Historically, suffragists have been ridiculed even in the press and in social circles, and often called “man-women.” This was because a married woman was legally defined as dependent on her husband, and an unmarried woman on her father.
Professor and historian Ana Prestes, from the University of Brasília (UnB), adds that ridicule in the press even took the form of cartoons.
“We have many cartoons from that era depicting a man wearing an apron at home and a woman in a suit on the street, intended to ridicule them. This was especially aimed at those men who dared to advocate for women’s suffrage.”
This argument, Professor Fernanda Abreu argues, was used to deny women the ability to vote according to their own interests. “In the realm of individual legal rights, in 1919, Leolinda Daltro [1859–1935] – founder of the Women’s Republican Party and one of the most outspoken leaders of the suffrage movement – had her candidacy for the municipal government of the Federal District rejected.”
In fact, Leolinda Daltro was one of the people most viciously attacked by the Brazilian press of the time, Professor Ana Prestes points out. “[The newspapers] found ways to portray her activities as if she were a troublemaker, a woman who wanted to wreak havoc all around,” she stated.
The researchers point out that the 1932 Electoral Code even included a requirement that a married woman obtain her husband’s permission to vote. The clause was only removed from the final text after intense pressure from suffragists. “Nothing happened without a struggle and strategic intelligence to win allies for this cause,” Cibele Tenório stated.
They believe that resistance to women’s suffrage was not merely a matter of isolated conservatism. It was institutionalized as public policy and legal norms.
The scholars note that a milestone in the history of the women’s suffrage movement in Brazil occurred in 1910 with the founding of the Women’s Republican Party, the first political party of its kind, which in 1917 organized a march of 90 women through downtown Rio de Janeiro to advocate for the cause.
Suffragists established newspapers and schools to discuss the issue. This was also done to counter the sexist rhetoric that permeated the pages of traditional outlets.
Amid this cultural and scientific effervescence of the early decades of the 20th century, women fought for various rights, as explained by political science professor Marlise Matos of the Center for Studies and Research on Women at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG).
She points out that women were fighting for two other major causes – greater access to education and the labor market. “But, without a doubt, winning the right to vote was fundamental to becoming full citizens. This was achieved amid a great deal of tension and conflict,” she said.
It is no coincidence that Bertha Lutz (1894–1976) became known as one of the leading figures in this struggle. “She knew how to mobilize people and engage even the most conservative individuals in search of allies,” Cibele Tenório remarked.
In 1922, the Brazilian Federation for Women’s Progress coordinated efforts with state governors, pressured Congress, and organized demonstrations. “It utilized the national and international press and established many connections with the global suffrage movement,” Professor Abreu added.
Laws that paved the way
The researchers interviewed by Agência Brasil believe that the most important milestone is Decree 21,076 of 1932 – the first Brazilian electoral code to guarantee women’s right to go to the polls and to vote in secret. This right was enshrined in the 1934 Constitution. Brazil became the fourth country in the Western world to grant women the right to vote (after Canada, the US, and Ecuador).
Under the 1946 Electoral Code, voting became mandatory for literate women. This new milestone marked its 80th anniversary in May. The Constitution, promulgated on September 18 of that same year, confirmed the rule. The most recent Constitution, that of 1988, eliminated the literacy requirement.
According to UFMG Professor Marlise Matos, the Brazilian government must reaffirm its commitment to the political rights of Brazilian women and strengthen informational and public awareness campaigns regarding participation in elections.
Ana Prestes, from UnB, points out that one path to resistance is strengthening formal education. “One thing I’ve observed in my research is that many suffragists were teachers or worked in educational programs.”
“They were people who championed education and creativity as well,” she added. She recalls that Bertha Lutz even arranged for a plane to fly over Rio de Janeiro dropping leaflets. “They were bold, persistent, and skilled organizers,” she said.
That is why it is necessary to end the erasure and invisibility of women who fought for great causes, such as women’s suffrage, education, and labor rights, argues Professor Hildete Pereira, a researcher at UFF.
In her view, financial dependence acts as a social barrier that perpetuates subordination even today. Furthermore, the labor market itself guarantees higher wages for men due to structural sexism. Historically, she points out, public policies should reinforce women’s role in society, such as their participation in politics.
“These women from the late 19th and early 20th centuries teach us, so long afterward, that we must participate and not give up,” Professor Pereira declared.
