Ciro Ferreira Gomes
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Ciro Ferreira Gomes (; born 6 November 1957), known
mononym A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person. In some cases, a mononym selected by an individual may have originally been from a polynym, a word which refers to one o ...
ously as Ciro, is a Brazilian politician, lawyer, and academic. Ciro is currently affiliated with and vice-president of the Democratic Labour Party (PDT). Born in
São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...
but raised in Ceará into a political family, Ciro began his political career at the age of 27 in 1984. Ciro was elected Mayor of Fortaleza at age of 30 in 1988 and was elected Governor of Ceará at the age of 32 in 1990. During his tenure, Ciro was the most popular governor in the country. His ''Viva Criança'' program that reduced infant mortality in Ceará by 32% was given an international award by
UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...
. His success led to his appointment as
Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
for a few months in late 1994 under
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
Itamar Franco Itamar Augusto Cautiero Franco (; 28 June 19302 July 2011) was a Brazilian politician who served as the 33rd president of Brazil from 29 December 1992 to 31 December 1994. Previously, he was the 21st vice president of Brazil from 1990 until the ...
, where he presided over the ongoing Real Plan that eventually stabilized the economy and ended
hyperinflation In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as t ...
. Ciro ran for
President of Brazil The president of Brazil ( pt, Presidente do Brasil), officially the president of the Federative Republic of Brazil ( pt, Presidente da República Federativa do Brasil) or simply the ''President of the Republic'', is the head of state and head o ...
for the Popular Socialist Party (PPS) in
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...
and 2002, coming in third and fourth place. In both Ciro presented himself as critical of
Fernando Henrique Cardoso Fernando Henrique Cardoso (; born 18 June 1931), also known by his initials FHC (), is a Brazilian sociologist, professor and politician who served as the 34th president of Brazil from 1 January 1995 to 31 December 2002. He was the first Brazi ...
presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...
and attempted to be a centre-left alternative to ''petista'' candidate
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (; born Luiz Inácio da Silva; 27 October 1945), known mononymously as Lula, is a Brazilian politician, trade unionist, and former metalworker who is the president-elect of Brazil. A member of the Workers' Party ...
. Following the election, Ciro was appointed by President Lula as Minister of National Integration, presiding over regional development and the interbasin transfer of the São Francisco River. In 2006, Ciro was elected
federal deputy The Chamber of Deputies ( pt, Câmara dos Deputados) is a federal legislative body and the lower house of the National Congress of Brazil. The chamber comprises 513 deputies, who are elected by proportional representation to serve four-year ...
for Ceará. Ciro was expected to succeed Lula for the 2010 election, but Lula instead appointed Energy Minister
Dilma Rousseff Dilma Vana Rousseff (; born 14 December 1947) is a Brazilian economist and politician who served as the 36th president of Brazil, holding the position from 2011 until her impeachment and removal from office on 31 August 2016. She is the first ...
, a move he criticized. Ciro coordinated her successful presidential campaigns, but afterwards retired to the private sector. In
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the Unit ...
, Ciro returned to politics after joining the Democratic Labour Party, launching his long-awaited third campaign for the presidency. Running on a platform that included a public credit debt refinancing, a progressive tax system with dividend tax, increased funding for education and healthcare, a federal agency defending
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, and a neo-Keynesian, re- industrializing platform, he sought to portray himself as an alternative between Lula's appointee
Fernando Haddad Fernando Haddad (born 25 January 1963) is a Brazilian academic and politician who has served as the Brazilian Minister of Finance since 1 January 2023. He was previously the List of mayors of São Paulo, Mayor of São Paulo from 2013 to 2016. He ...
and right-wing candidate Jair Bolsonaro. Though he polled better than Haddad directly against Bolsonaro, Ciro finished in third place. Following Bolsonaro's victory, many argued that Ciro would have won if he had been nominated by a centre-left coalition. Ciro refused to endorse Haddad afterwards, PT's offer to be his running mate, and has opposed Lula's party within the Brazilian left. Described as having "one of the sharpest tongues in Brazilian politics", Ciro's public image has been characterized by his outspoken personality, receiving both praise and criticism. Ciro is currently one of the main opposers of Jair Bolsonaro's presidency, accusing Bolsonaro and his sons of criminal militia involvement. Ciro was also critical of
Michel Temer Michel Miguel Elias Temer Lulia (; born 23 September 1940) is a Brazilian politician, lawyer and writer who served as the 37th president of Brazil from 31 August 2016 to 31 December 2018. He took office after the impeachment and removal from off ...
's
presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...
, characterizing Dilma's impeachment as a coup. He has also been critical of Lula's presidency, accusing him of enabling Dilma's impeachment through Temer and Eduardo Cunha's appointments, and both of leading a
social liberal Social liberalism (german: Sozialliberalismus, es, socioliberalismo, nl, Sociaalliberalisme), also known as new liberalism in the United Kingdom, modern liberalism, or simply liberalism in the contemporary United States, left-liberalism ...
government that led to the current Brazilian recession and Bolsonaro's election. Since joining PDT in 2015, Ciro has led a resurgence of PT's traditional left-wing nationalist opposition by PDT and the legacy of
Getúlio Vargas Getúlio Dornelles Vargas (; 19 April 1882 – 24 August 1954) was a Brazilian lawyer and politician who served as the 14th and 17th president of Brazil, from 1930 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1954. Due to his long and controversial tenure as Brazi ...
, receiving accusations of being a
left-wing populist Left-wing populism, also called social populism, is a political ideology that combines left-wing politics with populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric often consists of anti- elitism, opposition to the Establishment, and speaking for the "com ...
. In the private sector, Ciro served as director for Brazilian rail company Transnordestina S/A and steelmaker Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional, and he is a best-selling author.


Early life

Ciro was born in
Pindamonhangaba Pindamonhangaba is a municipality in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, located in the Paraíba Valley, between the two most active production and consumption regions in the country, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. It is accessible by the Via Dutra ( ...
, São Paulo, the son of José Euclides Ferreira Gomes Filho and Maria José Ferreira Gomes in 1957. His family moved to Sobral, Ceará in 1962. His father's family, the Ferreira Gomes family, has been active in Ceará politics for several generations. Ciro enrolled in the Law School of the Federal University of Ceará in 1976. Ciro later recalled that within the student movements of the time, he was most closely affiliated with the Catholic Left. Upon graduation, Ciro returned to the city of Sobral, to work for the local government as a municipal prosecutor.


State political career


State politics

Ciro ran for office for the first time in 1982, as a State Deputy representing Sobral, and won; he began his first term in February 1983. Ciro attracted substantial media attention early on for his willingness to debate national political questions — including democracy, social reforms, and international relations — which he said other Ceará politicians ignored. In 1985, Ciro also started teaching tax law as a professor at the University of Fortaleza. In 1988, Ciro was elected Mayor of Fortaleza, the capital of Ceará, and began his term the next year. As Mayor of Fortaleza, endorsed centre-left candidate Mário Covas in the first round of the 1989 presidential election and socialist candidate
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (; born Luiz Inácio da Silva; 27 October 1945), known mononymously as Lula, is a Brazilian politician, trade unionist, and former metalworker who is the president-elect of Brazil. A member of the Workers' Party ...
in the second round.


Governor of Ceará

Ciro was elected the Governor of Ceará in 1990, at the age of 32, becoming the second youngest governor in the country at the time. His efforts included policies to support small businesses and reduce bureaucracy. He also cracked down on tax evasion, increasing state revenue. Ciro also ordered increased investments in education and in public health; by July 1992, a
Datafolha Datafolha is Grupo Folha's polling institute, founded in 1983 as the research department of Empresa Folha da Manhã S. A., and later on became a separate company able to serve external clients, from 1990. In 1995, it became a separate business unit ...
poll found he was the most popular governor in Brazil, with a 74% approval rate, and
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
magazine listed him as one of the 100 most important emerging leaders on the world stage. One of his most high-profile achievements as governor was the construction of a 71-mile long water canal, the " Canal do Trabalhador." Northeastern Brazil suffered a series of droughts in 1991, 1992, and 1993; in 1993, Ciro managed to organize and complete the construction of the canal in only 3 months, successfully bringing water to the capital city of Fortaleza and thus preventing a water supply crisis. Ciro's public health program "Programa Viva Criança" was attributed with a 32% decrease in infant mortality in the state and was awarded the Maurice Paté prize by
UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...
.


National political career


Minister of Finance

In 1994 he served as Minister of Finance in the administration of
Itamar Franco Itamar Augusto Cautiero Franco (; 28 June 19302 July 2011) was a Brazilian politician who served as the 33rd president of Brazil from 29 December 1992 to 31 December 1994. Previously, he was the 21st vice president of Brazil from 1990 until the ...
. This appointment came at a crucial time in Brazil's modern economic development, when the Real Plan was underway as an economic stabilization program to fight hyperinflation. His successful performance overseeing the Real Plan was credited by some with helping
Fernando Henrique Cardoso Fernando Henrique Cardoso (; born 18 June 1931), also known by his initials FHC (), is a Brazilian sociologist, professor and politician who served as the 34th president of Brazil from 1 January 1995 to 31 December 2002. He was the first Brazi ...
win the subsequent presidential election in the fall of 1994, after Cardoso campaigned on continuing the plan's implementation. However, Ciro would break with the Cardoso government in 1997.


1998 presidential candidacy

A founding member of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) in 1988, Ciro would leave the party, which was originally centre-left, in 1997 following its right turn. Ciro would join the Socialist People's Party (PPS) in opposition to the Cardoso administration, and ran as a member of the party for president in
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...
with Roberto Freire as his running mate. During the campaign, Ciro attempted to position himself as a left alternative to
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (; born Luiz Inácio da Silva; 27 October 1945), known mononymously as Lula, is a Brazilian politician, trade unionist, and former metalworker who is the president-elect of Brazil. A member of the Workers' Party ...
, a staple of the Brazilian left who had run for president twice prior to 1998 as a member of the Workers' Party (PT). The centrist
Brazilian Democratic Movement The Brazilian Democratic Movement ( pt, Movimento Democrático Brasileiro, MDB) is a Brazilian political party. It is considered a "big tent party" and it is one of the parties with the greatest representation throughout the national territory, ...
(PMDB), a kingmaker in Brazilian politics, considered supporting his candidacy, but did not end up doing so. In the end, Ciro came in third place in the first round, and won 11% of the vote (only the top two candidates advance to the second round). The sole state he won was Ceará, his home state. However, Cardoso was re-elected with a majority.


2002 presidential candidacy and aftermath

During the 2002 presidential election, Ciro looked to be formidable, even passing
PSDB The Brazilian Social Democracy Party ( pt, Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira, PSDB), also known as the Brazilian Social Democratic Party or the Party of Brazilian Social Democracy,. is a political party in Brazil. As the third largest par ...
candidate
José Serra José Serra Chirico (; born 19 March 1942) is a Brazilian politician who has served as a Congressman, Senator, Minister of Planning, Minister of Health, Mayor of São Paulo, Governor of São Paulo state, and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bra ...
, the main centre-right candidate, at one point in the polls. However, a series of gaffes, most notable a crass joke about his wife Patrícia Pillar, led to his collapse in the polls, and Ciro came in fourth place in the first round, with 12% of the vote. He supported
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (; born Luiz Inácio da Silva; 27 October 1945), known mononymously as Lula, is a Brazilian politician, trade unionist, and former metalworker who is the president-elect of Brazil. A member of the Workers' Party ...
in the second round of the 2002 election, and was ultimately chosen to be the Minister for National Integration in Lula's new government. When the PPS' leadership voted to leave the governing coalition in December 2004 that propped up Lula's government, Ciro chose to remain in his post. As a result, the PPS removed him from the party leadership, and he decided to join the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB) in 2005. In 2006 he was elected to the Chamber of Deputies with 16.19% of the vote, the highest percentage ever achieved by a single candidate in a proportional election. He has been publicly critical of the efforts to impeach Dilma Rousseff and prosecute Lula.


2018 presidential election

Having passed on a presidential campaign in 2010, Ciro announced his long-awaited third bid for the presidency in the 2018 presidential election as the candidate of the PDT. For the position of Vice President, Ciro chose
Kátia Abreu Kátia Regina de Abreu (born 2 February 1962) is a Brazilian politician. She has been serving as the Senator from Tocantins since 2007. She was a congresswoman elected by the Tocantins State from 2003 to 2007. She is a member of Progressistas, si ...
, a centre former
Minister of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister ...
, as his running mate. Political analysts had widely speculated that, since Lula was legally barred from running for president (after his conviction for corruption, under Brazil's " Ficha Limpa" law), Ciro would attract many of Lula's supporters in the 2018 presidential election, and potentially unite a number of left and center-left political parties. His main contender for the left vote was
Fernando Haddad Fernando Haddad (born 25 January 1963) is a Brazilian academic and politician who has served as the Brazilian Minister of Finance since 1 January 2023. He was previously the List of mayors of São Paulo, Mayor of São Paulo from 2013 to 2016. He ...
, the former Mayor of São Paulo, running as a member of the Workers' Party (PT) with Lula's backing. Polling showed that Ciro would have performed better versus Bolsonaro in the second round than Haddad would have. While Ciro polled competitively throughout most of the election, Lula's endorsement of Haddad rallied enough of his former voters to support Haddad. As a result, Ciro finished in third place in the first round, only coming in first place in his home state of Ceará. In the second round, Ciro announced his opposition to right-wing rival Jair Bolsonaro, who he describes as a "fascist" for his pro-military rule statements, but did not formally endorse Haddad. Following the election of Bolsonaro over Haddad, a number of major left figures including Governor
Rui Costa Rui Manuel César Costa (; born 29 March 1972) is a Portuguese former professional footballer who is the 34th president of sports club S.L. Benfica. He also succeeded Luís Filipe Vieira as president of the club's SAD board of directors. ...
of
Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest b ...
, a member of the PT, indicated they regret supporting Haddad over Ciro.


2022 presidential election

Ciro Gomes is running for president for the fourth time in the 2022 presidential election.


Personal life

Ciro has lived in Ceará for most of his life, graduating with a degree in law from the Federal University of Ceará. He was a professor of tax law and constitutional law, and wrote three books on political economy: "''No País dos Conflitos''" ("In the Country of Conflicts", 1994); "''O Próximo Passo – Uma Alternativa Prática ao Neoliberalismo''" ("The Next Step - A Practical Alternative to Neoliberalism", 1995), co-authored with Harvard professor
Roberto Mangabeira Unger Roberto Mangabeira Unger (; born 24 March 1947) is a Brazilian philosopher and politician. His work is in the tradition of classical social theory and pragmatism, and is developed across many fields including legal theory, philosophy and religion ...
; and "''Um Desafio Chamado Brasil''" ("A Challenge Called Brazil," 2002). He was also a visiting researcher at Harvard Law School. He served in the private sector as the President of Transnordestina S/A (a commodities transportation company in Northeastern Brazil), and on the Board of Directors of Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional. Two of his four siblings (
Cid Gomes Cid Ferreira Gomes (born 27 April 1963) is a Brazilian politician who serves as a Senator for the state of Ceará since 2019. He is a member of the Democratic Labour Party (PDT) since 2015, and is the brother of fellow Brazilian politician Cir ...
and Ivo Gomes), his father, and his uncle, have all been involved in Brazilian politics. He was married to his first wife, politician Patrícia Saboya, from 1983 to 1999, with whom he has three children: Lívia, Ciro and Yuri. Like her husband, Patricia Saboya Gomes was also politically active in the Northeastern state of Ceara, including serving as a Federal Deputy and a Senator for the state; the two were seen as political allies. From 1999 to 2011, Ciro was married to Brazilian actress Patrícia Pillar. In 2013, he began a relationship with Zara Castro, with whom he had his fourth child, Gael, in 2015. Ciro is the godfather of his advisor Roberto Mangabeira Unger's eldest child, Gabriel. Since 2017, his girlfriend has been TV producer Giselle Bezerra; she was previously a dancer on the popular Brazilian TV show ''Xuxa''.


Awards

* Medal of Merit for Defense (Order of Great Cross), awarded by the President, on November 21, 2003. * Juscelino Kubitscheck Medal (Highest Order), awarded by the Governor of Minas Gerais, 1997. * World Prize from
UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...
- Maurice Pate Leadership for Children Award, 1993.


Published works

He has written four books: * ''No País dos Conflitos'' (1994) - co-authored with Miriam Leitão. * ''O Próximo Passo – Uma Alternativa Prática ao Neoliberalismo'' (1996) - co-authored with
Roberto Mangabeira Unger Roberto Mangabeira Unger (; born 24 March 1947) is a Brazilian philosopher and politician. His work is in the tradition of classical social theory and pragmatism, and is developed across many fields including legal theory, philosophy and religion ...
. * ''Um Desafio Chamado Brasil'' (2002) - a collection of op-eds written for the newspapers '' O Estado de S. Paulo'' and ''
Jornal da Tarde ''Jornal da Tarde'', often abbreviated ''JT'', was a daily newspaper in São Paulo, Brazil. The paper was published by Grupo Estado, the owner of other prominent Brazilian news media such as '' O Estado de S. Paulo'' and '' Rádio Eldorado''. It wa ...
'' between 1995 and 1999. * ''Projeto Nacional: O Dever Da Esperança'' (2020).


See also

*
List of mayors of Fortaleza The following is a list of mayors of the city of Fortaleza, Brazil. * , 1890 * , 1890-1891 * Joaquim de Oliveira Catunda, 1891-1892 * Guilherme César da Rocha, 1892-1912 * João Marinho de Albuquerque Andrade, 1912 * , 1912-1914, 1921-1923 ...


References


External links

*
Official website
* Portuguese Wikipedia entry on Ciro Gomes , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gomes, Ciro 1957 births Living people People from Pindamonhangaba Brazilian people of Portuguese descent Democratic Social Party politicians Brazilian Democratic Movement politicians Brazilian Social Democracy Party politicians Cidadania politicians Brazilian Socialist Party politicians Republican Party of the Social Order politicians Democratic Labour Party (Brazil) politicians Finance Ministers of Brazil Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Brazil) from Ceará Members of the Legislative Assembly of Ceará Mayors of Fortaleza Mayors of places in Brazil Governors of Ceará 20th-century Brazilian lawyers Harvard Law School alumni Candidates for President of Brazil Federal University of Ceará alumni 20th-century Brazilian politicians 21st-century Brazilian politicians