The Federal Senate provides an essential tool for democratic participation: public consultations. Through the portal e-Citizenship, all Brazilian citizens have the opportunity to give their opinion on bills and other proposals that are being processed in the House, thus playing an active role in the formulation of laws that impact the country.

As established by Resolution No. 26 of 2013, all bills being processed in the Senate are open to public opinion from the beginning to the end of the legislative process. Consultation is simple and accessible: anyone registered on the portal can register their vote for a bill, with only one vote per user allowed for each proposal.

Criteria for participation in public consultations

The participation process is straightforward: by accessing the public consultation menu on the e-Cidadania portal, citizens can search for the project of interest using filters such as keyword, author, type of proposal, number and year. The more specific the data entered, the faster the search will be.

Recorded votes cannot be changed or deleted after confirmation, which reinforces the importance of an informed decision on the part of the user. The bill remains available for public consultation while it is being processed in the Senate, ensuring that opinions can be expressed throughout the process.

The public consultation mechanism offers Brazilians a unique opportunity to directly participate in the formulation of the country's laws. Through e-Cidadania, any citizen can influence the decisions that shape the future of Brazil. Participating is simple: just access the Federal Senate website, register and start giving your opinion.

Influence and moderation of opinions

Although public consultations are not binding – that is, senators are not obliged to follow the results of the votes – the opinions recorded serve as a barometer of popular will. The results of the consultations are communicated periodically to the parliamentary offices, and are an important reference for forming the senators' opinions.

Moderation of opinions is minimal, limited to the use of temporary email servers, whose votes are deleted to ensure the integrity of the process.