The period of party conventions for the 2024 Municipal Elections began last Saturday (20th) and will last until August 5th. During this interval, political parties and federations are authorized to hold conventions to choose their candidates for the positions of mayor, deputy mayor and councilor, in addition to deliberating on possible coalitions. This schedule is outlined in the Electoral Calendar for the October election.

Parties and federations must ensure that, on the date of the convention, in each municipality, the party that wishes to participate in the elections has a management body constituted in the district and duly registered with the regional electoral court, in accordance with the party statute. In the case of federations, at least one of the member parties must comply with this requirement.

Conventions are formal meetings between members and the political party, held in accordance with the association's statutory rules. These events can have two main objectives: to discuss specific non-electoral topics or to choose candidates and deliberate on coalitions for an election.

Available Formats

Party conventions can be held in person, virtually or in a hybrid format. After choosing the candidates, the party can now request registration of candidacies with the Electoral Court, which must be done by August 15th.

Party federations registered with the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) are also qualified to participate in the elections, and must hold their conventions in a unified manner, as if they were a single association.

According to the Elections Law (article 10, paragraph 3, of Law No. 9,504/1997), each party, federation or coalition may request the registration of a candidacy for mayor and vice-mayor. For municipal councils, the number of registered applications can be up to 100% of the number of vacancies available, plus one more. Therefore, the party or federation must guarantee a minimum proportion of 30% and a maximum of 70% of candidates of each sex.

The period of party conventions is a crucial moment for defining the candidacies and coalitions that will participate in the 2024 Municipal Elections, directly influencing the political composition of Brazilian municipalities.

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