# Socialism and Liberty Party

The Socialism and Liberty Party (Portuguese: Partido Socialismo e Liberdade, IPA:; PSOL) is a left-wing political party in Brazil. The party describes itself as socialist and democratic.
The party leader is Juliano Medeiros 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, besides the mayor of Belém Edmilson Rodrigues and the minister of the Native People Sônia Guajajara, with a number of well-known Brazilian left-wing leaders and intellectuals, such as Milton Temer [arz; pt], Hamilton Assis, Michael Löwy, Luciana Genro, Vladimir Safatle, Renato Roseno [pt], Carlos Nelson Coutinho [pt], Ricardo Antunes [pt], Francisco de Oliveira [fr; pt], João Machado, Pedro Ruas [pt] 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. 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.

## 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 unionism 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

| Abbreviation | Name in Portuguese | Name in English | Ideology | International affiliation |
| APS-NE | Ação Popular Socialista - Nova Era | Socialist People's Action - New Era | Democratic socialism | |
| | Rebelião Ecossocialista | Ecosocialist Rebellion | Trotskyism Mandelism Eco-socialism | Fourth International (reunited) |
| | Centelhas | Sparks | Trotskyism Mandelism Eco-socialism | Fourth International (reunited) |
| | Fortalecer o PSOL | Strengthen PSOL | Trotskyism, Left-wing populism | |
| | Insurgência | Insurgency | Trotskyism Mandelism Eco-socialism | Fourth International (reunited) |
| LSR | Liberdade, Socialismo e Revolução | Freedom, Socialism and Revolution | Trotskyism | International Socialist Alternative |
| MES | Movimento Esquerda Socialista | Socialist Left Movement | Trotskyism Morenism | Fourth International (reunited) |
| PS | Primavera Socialista | Socialist Spring | Democratic socialism | |
| | Resistência | Resistance | Trotskyism | |
| | Revolução Solidária | Solidarity Revolution | Left-wing populism | |
| SBVT | Subverta | Subvert | Trotskyism Mandelism Eco-socialism Buen vivir | Fourth International (reunited) |
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 October 2023.

### Federal Deputies

| Name | State | Internal tendency |
| Fernanda Melchionna | Rio Grande do Sul | MES |
| Célia Xakriabá | Minas Gerais | Independent |
| Tarcísio Motta | Rio de Janeiro | Independent |
| Chico Alencar | Rio de Janeiro | Independent |
| Henrique Vieira | Rio de Janeiro | Revolução Solidária |
| Talíria Petrone | Rio de Janeiro | Subverta |
| Glauber Braga | Rio de Janeiro | Independent |
| Ivan Valente | São Paulo | Primavera Socialista |
| Luiza Erundina | São Paulo | Independent |
| Sâmia Bomfim | São Paulo | MES |
| Erika Hilton | São Paulo | Revolução Solidária |
| Luciene Cavalcante | São Paulo | Educação em Primeiro Lugar |
| Guilherme Boulos | São Paulo | Revolução Solidária |

### State Deputies

| Name | State | Internal tendency |
| Carlos Giannazi | São Paulo | Educação em Primeiro Lugar |
| Bancada Feminista | São Paulo | Resistência/Insurgência/Subverta |
| Ediane Maria | São Paulo | Revolução Solidária |
| Mônica do Movimento Pretas | São Paulo | MES |
| Guilherme Cortez | São Paulo | Resistência |
| Renata Souza | Rio de Janeiro | Revolução Solidária |
| Flávio Serafini | Rio de Janeiro | Subverta |
| Dani Monteiro | Rio de Janeiro | Maloka Socialista |
| Professor Josemar | Rio de Janeiro | MES |
| Yuri Moura | Rio de Janeiro | Revolução Solidária |
| Luciana Genro | Rio Grande do Sul | MES |
| Matheus Gomes | Rio Grande do Sul | Resistência |
| Fábio Félix | Federal District | MES |
| Max Maciel | Federal District | Independent |
| Camila Valadão | Espírito Santo | MES |
| Linda Brasil | Sergipe | Independent |
| Renato Roseno | Ceará | Insurgência - Reconstrução Democrática |
| Hilton Coelho | Bahia | APS-NE |
| Dani Portela | Pernambuco | Independent |
| Lívia Duarte | Pará | Primavera Socialista |
| Bella Gonçalves | Minas Gerais | Revolução Solidária |
| Marquito | Santa Catarina | Independent |

## Elections
### 2006

PSOL launched Heloísa Helena to run for president in 2006 elections. The vice-presidential candidate was intellectual César Benjamin [es; pt]. The party ran in a left-wing ticket along with two other parties: Trotskyist United Socialist Workers' Party (PSTU) and Marxist–Leninist Brazilian Communist Party (PCB).
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, Milton Temer [pt] in Rio de Janeiro and Roberto Robaina in Rio Grande do Sul. However, they were all defeated.
Heloísa Helena finished the presidential race in the third place, receiving 6.5 million votes throughout the country (6.85% of the valid votes). 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 (0.87%). 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. Clecio Luis 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 Renato Roseno [pt] 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 (RJ) 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 (RJ) with 8.92% (14.62% in city of Rio Janeiro) and Robério Paulino (RN) with 8.74% (22.45% in capital Natal) got excellent results. Senate candidate Heloísa Helena (AL) got 31.86%, but she lost the election to former Brazilian president Fernando Collor de Mello, who was impeached.

### 2018

In 2018, PSOL chose prolific labor leader Guilherme Boulos as their nominee for the presidency. Boulos's close affiliation with former President Lula led to concern that his nomination would erode PSOL's distinct identity. It was alleged that party leadership pushed Boulos at the expense of other pre-candidates for the party's nomination, including economist (and son of 2010 presidential nominee Plínio de Arruda Sampaio) Plínio de Arruda Sampaio Jr., activist and educator Hamilton Assis, and academic Nildo Ouriques. Indigenous leader Sônia Guajajara, who initially sought the party's nomination, was chosen to serve as his vice presidential running mate.

### 2022

On 30 April, PSOL made official its support for the pre-candidacy of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) for the presidency. The party approved its support during electoral conference. On the 7 May, PT made official the pre-candidacy of ex-president Lula and ex-governor of São Paulo Geraldo Alckmin (PSB) to run for president. In June, a group of PSOL affiliates created a dissident movement of the party in protest against the support to the pre-candidacy of former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) and former governor Geraldo Alckmin (PSB) for the presidency.

## Electoral results
### Presidential

| Election year | Candidate | 1st round | 1st round | 2nd round | 2nd round |
| Election year | Candidate | # of overall votes | % of overall vote | # of overall votes | % of overall vote |
| 2006 | Heloísa Helena | 6,575,393 | 6.9 (#3) | | |
| 2010 | Plínio de Arruda Sampaio | 886,816 | 0.9 (#4) | | |
| 2014 | Luciana Genro | 1,612,186 | 1.6 (#4) | | |
| 2018 | Guilherme Boulos | 617,122 | 0.6 (#10) | | |
| 2022 | No candidate, endorsed Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva | — | — | | |

### Legislative elections

| Election | Chamber of Deputies | Chamber of Deputies | Chamber of Deputies | Chamber of Deputies | Federal Senate | Federal Senate | Federal Senate | Federal Senate | Role in government |
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Role in government |
| 2006 | 1,149,619 | 1.23% | 3 / 513 | New | 351,527 | 0.42% | 1 / 81 | New | Opposition |
| 2010 | 1,142,737 | 1.18% | 3 / 513 | 0 | 3,041,854 | 1.78% | 2 / 81 | 1 | Opposition |
| 2014 | 1,745,470 | 1.79% | 5 / 513 | 2 | 1,045,275 | 1.17% | 1 / 81 | 1 | Independent (2014-2016) |
| 2014 | 1,745,470 | 1.79% | 5 / 513 | 2 | 1,045,275 | 1.17% | 1 / 81 | 1 | Opposition (2016-2018) |
| 2018 | 2,783,669 | 2.83% | 10 / 513 | 5 | 5,273,853 | 3.08% | 0 / 81 | 1 | Opposition |
| 2022 | 3,852,246 | 3.52% | 12 / 513 | 2 | 675,244 | 0.68% | 0 / 81 | 0 | Coalition |
* ↑ Ran in federation with the Sustainability Network.