| Tancredo de Almeida Neves | |
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Elected President of Brazil but did not take office
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| In office March 15, 1985 – April 21, 1985 |
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| Vice President | José Sarney |
| Preceded by | João Figueiredo |
| Succeeded by | José Sarney |
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| In office September 8, 1961 – July 21, 1962 |
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| President | João Goulart |
| Preceded by | Afonso Celso de Assis Figueiredo (1889) |
| Succeeded by | Francisco de Paula Brochado da Rocha |
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| In office 1983 – 1984 |
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| Preceded by | Francelino Pereira dos Santos |
| Succeeded by | Hélio Carvalho Garcia |
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| Born | March 4, 1910 São João del Rey, Minas Gerais |
| Died | April 21, 1985 (aged 75) São Paulo, São Paulo |
| Nationality | Brazilian |
| Political party | PMDB - PMDB |
| Spouse(s) | Risoleta Neves |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Tancredo de Almeida Neves, SFO more commonly Tancredo Neves (Portuguese pronunciation: [tɐ͂ˈkɾedu ˈnɛvis]; March 4, 1910 - April 21, 1985) was a Brazilian politician. He was born in São João del Rei, in the state of Minas Gerais, and graduated in law. He began his political career as a member of the legislative chamber of his hometown in 1934, and was elected in 1947 to the Minas Gerais state legislature. Three years later he became a representative of his state in the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies. In 1953 he was appointed by President Getúlio Dornelles Vargas to be the Minister of Justice. Neves served in that post until Vargas committed suicide in 1954. In 1960, Neves ran unsuccessfully for governor of Minas Gerais.
During the political crisis that began with the resignation of President Jânio da Silva Quadros on August 25, 1961, a parliamentary system was installed in Brazil. Neves was appointed as Prime Minister by President João Goulart and served from September 1961 until July 1962[1]. The parliamentary system was abolished by plebiscite in January 1963. Goulart was overthrown in 1964 and Neves, who had up to that point been considered a moderate politician, became an opponent to the military regime in the Brazilian Democratic Movement (MDB). He was elected senator in 1978 and governor of Minas Gerais in 1982. In 1984, he was one of the leaders of the Diretas Já movement that demanded direct elections for President of Brazil. Neves was the opposition candidate to succeed President João Baptista de Oliveira Figueiredo.
During the Presidential campaign, he said if he got 500,000 votes from his party, not even God would keep him from the Presidency. He did get the votes, but could not become President. On January 15, 1985, Neves was elected President by a majority of the Electoral College. However, on March 15, just one day before he was to take the oath of office, Neves became severely ill. He suffered from abdominal complications and developed generalized infections. After seven operations, Neves died on April 21[2]. He was succeeded by José Sarney. Neves's ordeal was intensively covered by the Brazilian media and followed with anxiety by the whole nation, who had seen in him the way out of the authoritarian regime into what he had called a "New Republic" (Nova República). His death caused an outpouring of national grief. Tancredo Neves is counted among the official list of presidents of Brazil as a matter of homage and honour, since technically he never became president.
The Tancredo Neves International Airport in Belo Horizonte is named after him.
His grandson, Aécio Neves, became governor of Minas Gerais in 2003.
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| Preceded by João Figueiredo |
President of Brazil (elect) Died before assuming office - 1985 |
Succeeded by José Sarney |
| Preceded by Francelino Pereira dos Santos |
Governor of Minas Gerais 1983 - 1984 |
Succeeded by Hélio Carvalho Garcia |
References
- ^ Os gabinetes parlamentaristas
- ^ "Tancredo Neves está morto; corpo é velado no Planalto; Sarney reafirma mudanças" (in Portuguese). Folha de São Paulo. 1985-04-22. http://almanaque.folha.uol.com.br/brasil_22abr1985.htm. Retrieved 2007-03-05.
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