House of Representatives to have four indigenous parliamentarians
Four indigenous women have been elected to the House of Representatives in the 2022 elections: Sônia Guajajara (Psol from São Paulo), Célia Xakriabá (Psol from Minas Gerais), Silvia Waiãpi (PL from Amapá), and Juliana Cardoso (PT from São Paulo). They will take office as federal representatives on February 1st, 2023, the day the new Congress Legislature begins. Their term of office is four years.
The first indigenous woman elected to the House of Representatives was Joenia Wapichana (Rede from Roraima), who took office in 2019. On Sunday (Oct. 2), Joenia Wapichana received 11,221 votes, but did not manage to get reelected. Before her, the first indigenous federal representative was Mário Juruna (PDT from Rio de Janeiro), who took office in 1983.
Sônia Guajajara received 156,966 votes in São Paulo. She is from the Guajajara/Tentehar people, and live in Araribóia indigenous Reservation, in the state of Maranhão, Brazil. She has a degree in literature and nursing, and a post-graduate degree in special education. She has a history of fighting for the rights of native peoples and for the environment. In 2022, she was chosen by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Also in the state of São Paulo Juliana Cardoso was elected, with 125,517 votes. She has served two terms as a city council member in São Paulo, and works with social and popular movements in the city.
Célia Xakriabá received 101,154 votes in Minas Gerais state. She has a master's degree in sustainable development from the University of Brasília and is a PhD student in anthropology at the Federal University of Minas Gerais. She is one of the founders of the National Articulation of Indigenous Women Warriors of Ancestry. In the Secretary of Education of Minas, she has collaborated with the opening of indigenous and quilombola schools and the reopening of rural schools throughout the state.
Silvia Waiãpi received 5,435 votes in Amapá state. She is an actress, military officer, physical therapist, and politician.
The House of Representatives will have as of next year a female bench with 91 representatives, whereas this number stood at 77 in 2018. Women will represent 17.7 percent of the seats in the House against 15 percent today.
Indigenous people elected in Brazil
In all, there were 171 indigenous candidates considered eligible by the Superior Electoral Court - TSE in these elections, for all positions (president, governor, senator, federal, state, and district representatives). Besides the female federal representatives, the indigenous candidates Wellington Dias (PT from Piaui) and Hamilton Mourão (Republicanos from Rio Grande do Sul) have been elected as senators, and Paulo Guedes (PT from Minas Gerais) as federal representative.
Lucinio Castelo de Assumção, known as Capitain Assumção (PL from Espírito Santo), and Amanda Brandão Armelau (PL from Rio de Janeiro) have been elected as state representatives.
Over 300 indigenous nations totaling about 820,000 people in Brazil, represent 0.5 percent of the Brazilian population, the latest census of the government´s statistics agency IBGE from 2010 reads.
According to the United Nations Development Program - UNDP, about 5 percent of the world population correspond to indigenous people, and they are leaders in protecting the environment. This population, worldwide, is most likely to be vulnerable, as they represent 15 percent of the poorest.
