José Roberto Magalhães Teixeira was a Brazilian

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

, twice

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of the municipality of

Campinas Campinas (, ''Plains'' or ''Meadows'') is a Brazilian municipality in São Paulo State, part of the country's Southeast Region. According to the 2020 estimate, the city's population is 1,213,792, making it the fourteenth most populous Brazilian ...

, in the state of

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 ...

. Born in

Andradas Andradas is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the cou ...

, state of

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

, on 18 June 1937, he moved to Campinas in 1957, in order to study dentistry at the Pontifical Catholic University. He became widely known by his nickname, "Grama", because he had formerly lived in the city of São Sebastião da Grama. Simultaneously with his work as a dentist, Grama began his political career as candidate to councilman in 1968, running under the Movimento Democrático Brasileiro (MDB) opposition party. He was not elected, but he persisted and in 1976 he was elected a vice-mayor of Campinas. In 1982 he was elected mayor with 44,65% of valid votes. In 1988, he was considered the best mayor of Brazil by a

poll Poll, polled, or polling may refer to: Figurative head counts * Poll, a formal election ** Election verification exit poll, a survey taken to verify election counts ** Polling, voting to make decisions or determine opinions ** Polling places o ...

carried out by the prestigious newspaper

Folha de S.Paulo ''Folha de S.Paulo'' (sometimes spelled ''Folha de São Paulo''), also known as simply ''Folha'' (, ''Sheet''), is a Brazilian daily newspaper founded in 1921 under the name ''Folha da Noite'' and published in São Paulo by the Folha da Manhã c ...

. Among his many endeavours, he was the first mayor to institute in Brazil a Guaranteed Minimum Income Grant program, in order to reduce social inequalities. In the same year, Grama helped to found the

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 ...

(Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira). After finishing his mandate as mayor, Dr. Magalhães Teixeira ran for a federal representative of the state of São Paulo in 1990 and was elected with the largest ballot of the history of Campinas, with 136.522 votes. His mandate was marked by his active participation in the process which culminated in the impeachment of President

Fernando Collor de Mello Fernando Affonso Collor de Mello (; born 12 August 1949) is a Brazilian politician who served as the 32nd president of Brazil from 1990 to 1992, when he resigned in a failed attempt to stop his impeachment trial by the Brazilian Senate. Collor ...

in 1992. In the same year, Magalhães Teixeira was elected again for mayor of Campinas, with a vote of 224.365 votes. In 1994, he was nominated as coordinator in São Paulo of the campaign which elected President

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 ...

. Affected by a hepatic

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, he was unable to finish his second mandate, deceasing on February 29, 1996. He was homaged by a massive popular manifestation in his interment. A cultural center in Campinas, an industrial technical school (SESI) in Taboão da Serra, and the Campinas Beltway (Anel Viário) are named after him.

Bibliography

* Fabrini, G. and Lourenço, J.M. - ''Grama - a Biografia de Magalhães Teixeira'', July 2003.
Video Iconography of José Roberto Magalhães Teixeira
Centro de Memória,

UNICAMP The State University of Campinas ( pt, Universidade Estadual de Campinas), commonly called Unicamp, is a public research university in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Unicamp is consistently ranked among the top universities in Brazil and Latin ...

References

External links

Biography
PSDB São Paulo (In Portuguese) 1937 births 1996 deaths Brazilian Democratic Movement politicians Brazilian Social Democracy Party politicians Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Brazil) from São Paulo Deaths from liver cancer Deaths from cancer in São Paulo (state) Mayors of Campinas {{Brazil-politician-stub