Brazil is made up of 26 States and a Federal District. Their independence is guaranteed by Brazil's 1988 Constitution. Brazil's states maintain a separation between executive and legislature. Each of the 27 governors must achieve more than 50 per cent of the vote, including a run-off between the top two candidates if necessary. State legislatures have only one chamber. The deputies are elected through an open-list system in which the state serves as one constituency.
Government in Brazil's nearly 5,000 municipalities is also structured with a separation between the executive office of the Mayor (Prefeitura) and a legislative city council (Câmara de Vereadores). Elections for mayor also require the winner to obtain more than 50 per cent of the vote, with the exception of cities with less than 200,000 inhabitants. Local elections are held in the second year between presidential, congressional and state elections.
