Canguçu (1875-1891) : eleições, legislação eleitoral e política local em um município do sul do Rio Grande do Sul

Abstract

The elections were an important part of the daily life of Brazilian cities throughout the second half of the 19th century. In this dissertation, we aim to analyze the election processes that took place between 1881 and 1891 in the city of Canguçu, in the south of Rio Grande do Sul. Thus, we use sources produced by the electoral organizations and by changes the Brazilian elections have undergone due to the last legislative initiatives of the Empire and the first electoral laws of the Republic. We compare some central points of the legislation, such as rules that made proof of the voter’s income more difficult, with characteristics specific to the electoral dynamic of a city close to the country’s border, such as the constant renovation of part of its electorate. We also analyze the debates that took place within the electoral organizations and the main space of popular representation of the place, the City Council.