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Until 1982, Brazilian mayors were usually elected by the local municipality population, except 1) state capitals, 2) international border towns, and 3) "national security zones" (which included important mining places). After the 1988 Constitution, all mayors in the nation are directly elected every four years.
The capital ( Brasília), however, is governed by the Governor of the Federal District, who is not a mayor per se, but rather shares the same status as state governors.
In Brazil, mayors of largest cities, such as Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, have considerable influence in national politics, and are usually potential candidates to presidency.
| Town | State | Mayor |
| Rio de Janeiro | Rio de Janeiro (state) | César Maia |
| São Paulo | São Paulo (state) | Marta Suplicy |
| Curitiba | Paraná | Cássio Taniguchi |
| Belo HorizonteBelo Horizonte (a Portuguese name meaning beautiful horizon is among the most important cities in Brazil. It is the capital of Minas Gerais state, located in the southeast of the country. With a population of slightly more than 2 million, Belo Horizonte o | Minas GeraisMinas Gerais Capital Belo Horizonte Area587,172 km² Population15,831,800 Pop. density27/km² Timezone GMT -3 ISO 3166-2BR-MS Governor Aecio Neves (since 2003) Minas Gerais is one of the states of Brazil, the second most populous in the federation. The capi | Célio de Castro |
| Porto AlegreThis article is about Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. You may be looking for Portalegre, Alentejo, Portugal. Porto Alegre one of the largest cities in southern Brazil, is the capital of Rio Grande do Sul State. Population: over 1. 5 million (2004 | Rio Grande do SulStatistics Capital: Porto Alegre Area:282,062 km² Inhabitants:10,167,800 2000 Pop. density:36. km² Timezone:GMT-3 Governor:Germano Antonio Rigotto ISO 3166-2:BR-RS Map Rio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil. It is bordered on the north by t | João Verle |
| RecifeRecife (population 1. 3 million) is a city in northeastern Brazil. It is the capital of the Pernambuco state and is a port on the Atlantic Ocean. History The settlement was established by the Portuguese in 1537 and remained Portuguese until the independen | PernambucoStatistics Capital: Recife Area:98,281 km² Inhabitants:7,918,344 Pop. density:80. km² Timezone:GMT-3 ISO 3166-2:BR-PE Governor:Jarbas Vasconcellos Map Pernambuco is a state of Brazil, located in the northeastern part of the country. To the north are the s | João Paulo |