Independent candidacies for Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies: between the constitutional principle of party proportionality and the consolidation of parliamentary custom

Abstract

This paper analyzed the compatibility between the constitutional rule establishing party proportionality in the composition of the Board of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies and the customary practice – gaining normative
force – that allows independent candidacies for the position of Speaker of
the Chamber of Deputies, even when originating from parties other than those entitled to the seat based on proportional criteria. To this end, a methodological approach based on documentary and normative analysis was adopted, involving constitutional and procedural provisions, as well as parliamentary
and judicial decisions and transcriptions of floor debates in the Chamber of
Deputies. The study concluded that the admissibility of independent candidacies does not, in itself, constitute a violation of the Federal Constitution or the Internal Rules of the Chamber of Deputies, as it is supported by legislative tradition and doctrinal
interpretations.