The fastest was Carlos Luz from Minas Gerais, who warmed up the presidential chair for just three days. He came to office as a substitute for incumbent Café Filho, but received a red card from Congress because he was allegedly conspiring to prevent the inauguration of the next president, the newly elected Juscelino Kubitschek. We set up a gallery below with the ten fastest presidents in Brazilian history. Only politicians elected by popular vote within the presidential line of succession were considered (you know: if the president leaves, the vice-president takes over. If the vice-president leaves, the president of the Chamber of Deputies enters. it’s the turn of the President of the Senate). As a result, members of military councils, indirectly elected presidents, those who came to power through coups d’état and interims who assumed power through travel or medical leave of the incumbent, who soon after returned to office, were left out. You will see that most of the leaders who barely had time to say “hi” took office between 1954 and 1964, the troubled period between the suicide of Getúlio Vargas and the military coup.
1. CARLOS LUZ
– (Rogério Nunes/)
Government time: 3 days
Why it was brief: President of the Chamber of Deputies, took over on November 8, 1955 after President Café Filho suffered a heart attack. Accused of conspiring to prevent the inauguration of the next president, Juscelino Kubitschek, Luz was pressured by the military and prevented by Congress from remaining in office. He ended up jumping out three days later.
2. RANIERI MAZZILI
– (Disclosure/Reproduction/Wikimedia Commons)
Government time: 13 days
Because it was brief – This Speaker of the House held the presidency twice. First, it was 14 days in 1961, when Jânio Quadros resigned and he took over because vice-president João Goulart was in China. The second time was in 1964, when a coup overthrew Goulart. Mazzili came to power, but handed over the position 13 days later to Castelo Branco
3. NEREU RAMOS
– (Disclosure/Reproduction/Wikimedia Commons)
Government time: 2 months and 21 days
Why it was brief: President of the Senate, he took over after the impeachment of the president of the Chamber, Carlos Luz. His “term of office” was complicated: he governed under a state of siege and suffered threats from the vice president, Café Filho, who wanted to return to power. On January 31, 1956, Nereu handed over the government to President-elect Juscelino Kubitschek
4. JÂNIO QUADROS
– (Rogério Nunes/)
Government time: 6 months and 27 days
Why it was brief: Elected president with huge votes, Jânio issued bizarre measures (such as banning bikinis in Miss pageants) and faced strong opposition in Congress. He resigned from office in August 1961 because of “terrible and occult forces” that would not let him govern. No one understood anything – and will not understand: he died in 1992 without ever explaining the episode
5. DELFIM MOREIRA
– (Disclosure/Reproduction/Wikimedia Commons)
Government time: 8 months and 16 days
Why it was brief: That vice-president took over on November 15, 1918 because the elected president, Rodrigues Alves, fell ill and quit. Delfim left office after a new election took place – at the time, the Constitution provided that the vice president would only assume provisionally, when the incumbent could not be sworn in
6. COFFEE SON
– (Disclosure/Reproduction/Wikimedia Commons)
Government time: 1 year, 2 months and 20 days
Because it was brief – Vice-president, Café Filho took office on August 24, 1954, when President Getúlio Vargas killed himself. In 1955, he suffered a heart attack and resigned from office. Some say the episode was pure pretense. In fact, 16 days later, Café Filho said he had recovered and wanted to return to government. But Congress did not
7. NILO PEÇANHA
– (Disclosure/Reproduction/Wikimedia Commons)
Government time: 1 year, 5 months and 1 day
Why it was brief: This vice-president assumed the government on June 14, 1909, after the death of President Affonso Pena. Among his main measures, he inaugurated technical education, the service to protect the Indians in Brazil and started the sanitation of the Baixada Fluminense. He stayed until the inauguration of the newly elected, Hermes da Fonseca
8. ITAMAR FRANCO
– (Rogério Nunes/)
Government time: 2 years, 3 months and 29 days
Why it was brief: No one knew the vice president on Collor’s ticket. But behold, Itamar reached the top post on December 29, 1992, after the “maharaja hunter” resigned. During his term, Itamar launched the Plano Real, which ended more than a decade of hyperinflation. He stayed in government until 1995, when the newly elected FHC took over.
9. FERNANDO COLLOR
– (Rogério Nunes/)
Government time: 2 years, 6 months and 17 days
Why it was brief: The first president directly elected after the military period, Collor was the youngest person to assume the Presidency – he was only 40 years old in 1990. Involved in corruption allegations, he was investigated by a CPI and had to resign in 1992 to escape a process of impeachment.
10. JOÃO GOULART
– (Rogério Nunes/)
Government time: 2 years, 6 months, 23 days
Why it was brief: Vice-president, he took over in 1961 after the resignation of Jânio Quadros – but with limited powers, as Congress had instituted the parliamentary regime. After parliamentarism was rejected by plebiscite in 1963, he ruled with full powers. But he had a very complicated mandate and ended up deposed by the military coup of March 31, 1964