THE VOTER
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Participation of the people - One of the purposes of democracy is the political participation of the people, which has the vote as its main form of expression.

The right to vote was restricted in different periods of the Brazilian history, and the electoral legislation progressively changed the profile of voters.

During the colonial period, the only conditions were that the voter should be at least 25 years old and reside in the district.

During the Empire (1822-1889), the minimum age continued to be 25 years old, with the exception of the military officials and married citizens, who were able to vote at the age of 21.

However, the vote was linked to the pecuniary census and excluded the clergy and those who lived in cloistral communities, as well as freed slaves, servants, remunerated soldiers and public officials.

In 1882, the illiterate lost their right to vote with the Saraiva Law, which established the "literary census." During the Old Republic (1889-1930), the minimum age was changed to 21 years old, and the vote based on pecuniary census was abolished.