Socialism and Liberty Party
The Socialism and Liberty Party is a left-wing political party in Brazil. The party describes itself as socialist and democratic.
The party leader is Paula Coradi and the federal deputies Ivan Valente, Talíria Petrone, Sâmia Bomfim, Fernanda Melchionna, Glauber Braga, Luiza Erundina, Erika Hilton, Chico Alencar, Célia Xakriabá, Guilherme Boulos, Pastor Henrique Vieira, Tarcísio Motta and Luciene Cavalcante, as well as the minister of the Native People Sônia Guajajara, with a number of well-known Brazilian left-wing leaders and intellectuals, such as, Hamilton Assis, Michael Löwy, Luciana Genro, Vladimir Safatle,,,,, João Machado, and others.
PSOL was formed after Heloísa Helena, Luciana Genro, Babá and João Fontes were expelled from the Workers' Party after voting against the pension reform proposed by Lula da Silva">Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva">Lula da Silva. They opposed the decisions of Lula's government, considering them to be too conservative, and the Workers' Party alliances with controversial right-wing politicians, such as the former presidents José Sarney and Fernando Collor.
After collecting more than 438,000 signatures, PSOL became Brazil's 29th officially recognized political party, the first to do so by this method. The logo, a smiling sun, was designed by famed cartoonist and children's author Ziraldo.
Ideology and support
The ideology of the party varies between the left and the far left. The programmatic elements found in the party are related to socialism, anti-capitalism, and anti-imperialism. There are Marxist, Trotskyist, eco-socialist, and labor unionist tendencies within the party. Among other things, the party program includes the reduction of working hours, agrarian and urban reform, increased spending on health, education and infrastructure, and a break with the International Monetary Fund. It also seeks to decriminalize abortion. Because it is a party formed by trends that possess the political spectrum of the left in common, they represent distinct divisions in question of origin, geographical location and composition of its leaderships. The formation of tendencies provided for in the party statute can be freely organized without direct interference from the party leadership, allowing autonomy of intra-party groups, provided they follow the political prerogatives of the party's statute and program.Internal tendencies
PSOL also allows certain unregistered political parties to launch candidates through its TSE registry number. These organizations, however, cannot participate in the party's congresses. This is some organization that used PSOL electoral legend in some moment:| Abbreviation | Name in Portuguese | Name in English | Ideology |
| BP | Brigadas Populares | People's Brigades | Marxism–Leninism, Left-wing nationalism, Socialism of the 21st Century, Bolivarianism |
| MRT | Movimento Revolucionário de Trabalhadores | Workers' Revolutionary Movement | Trotskyism |
| PCR | Partido Comunista Revolucionário | Revolutionary Communist Party | Marxism–Leninism, Stalinism, Guevarism, Hoxhaism, Anti-revisionism |
| PCLCP | Polo Comunista Luiz Carlos Prestes | Luiz Carlos Prestes Communist Hub | Marxism–Leninism, Left-wing nationalism |
| RAiZ | Raiz - Movimento Cidadanista | Roots - Citizens' Movement | Eco-socialism, Teko Porã, Ubuntu |
| RC | Refundação Comunista | Communist Refoundation | Revolutionary socialism |
Members of the National Congress
''As of April 2025.''Elections
2006
PSOL launched Heloísa Helena to run for president in the 2006 elections. The vice-presidential candidate was intellectual. The party ran in a left-wing ticket along with two other parties: Trotskyist United Socialist Workers' Party and Marxist–Leninist Brazilian Communist Party.The alliance was extended to gubernatorial elections. In Minas Gerais, for instance, Vanessa Portugal, from the PSTU, ran for governor with PSOL's support, although not with PCB's. Prominent PSOL gubernatorial candidates were Plínio de Arruda Sampaio in São Paulo, in Rio de Janeiro and Roberto Robaina in Rio Grande do Sul. However, they were all defeated.
Heloísa Helena finished the presidential race in third place, receiving 6.5 million votes throughout the country. Three federal deputies, Luciana Genro, Chico Alencar and Ivan Valente, managed to get re-elected.
2010
In the 2010 candidate for presidential election Plínio de Arruda Sampaio received 888.000 votes. Plinio presented an agrarian reform project in 1964 when he was federal deputy, but the 1964 Military Coup ended the project and Plinio lost his mandate. Although he received very few votes Plinio became famous after the elections because he was qualified as an anti-candidate.PSOL elected three deputies again, Chico Alencar, Ivan Valente and Jean Wyllys.
Toninho do PSOL from Federal District got the best gubernatorial result. He finished in third place with 14.25%.
2012
In 2012 PSOL got its best results so far. Clécio Luís and Gelsimar Gonzaga were elected mayors in Macapá, Amapá's state capital, and Itaocara.In the northern second largest city Belém and in Rio de Janeiro, PSOL finished second and elected four city councillors – the second largest group in those councils. In Belem Edmilson Rodrigues got 43.39% and in Rio de Janeiro Marcelo Freixo got 28.15%, almost 1 million votes.
Other places like São Paulo, Fortaleza, Campinas, Belo Horizonte, Curitiba, Salvador, Natal, Florianópolis, Niterói, São Gonçalo and Pelotas, PSOL got respectable results in 2012, 49 city councillors from PSOL were elected.
2014
PSOL initially nominated Randolfe Rodrigues, the Senator for Amapá, as their candidate for president in 2014, with former federal deputy and party co-founder Luciana Genro as his running mate. Federal deputy Chico Alencar of Rio de Janeiro and attorney also ran for the party's nomination. However, he was replaced at the top of the ticket by Genro, a member of the Left Socialist Movement faction. She got 1,612,186 votes finishing in 4th place.Genro's campaign received the support of important Brazilian intellectuals and celebrities. These included like Chico de Oliveira, Rogério Arantes, Vladimir Safatle, Michel Löwy, Gregorio Duvivier, Valesca Popozuda, Zélia Duncan, Karina Buhr, Clara Averbuck, Marina Lima, Juca Kfouri, Preta Gil, Laerte Coutinho, Marcelo Yuka and the international popstar Jessica Sutta. Her candidacy was well-regarded in the LGBT community.
PSOL elected 5 federal deputies and 12 state deputies. Marcelo Freixo received the highest vote for a state deputy in Brazil with 350,408 votes. Carlos Giannazi was the leftist most voted in São Paulo with 164,929 votes.
Gubernatorial candidates Tarcísio Motta with 8.92% and Robério Paulino with 8.74% got excellent results. Senate candidate Heloísa Helena got 31.86%, but she lost the election to former Brazilian president Fernando Collor de Mello, who was impeached.