Tancredo Neves
Tancredo de Almeida Neves (March 4, 1910 - April 21, 1985) was a Brazilian banker and politician. He was born in São João Del Rei, in the state of Minas Gerais, and graduated in law. He began his political career as a member of the legislative chamber of his hometown in 1934, and was elected in 1947 to the Minas Gerais state legislature. Three years later he became a representative of his state in the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies. In 1953 he was appointed by President Getúlio Dornelles Vargas to be the Minister of Justice. Neves served in that post until Vargas committed suicide in 1954. In 1960, Neves ran unsuccessfully for governor of Minas Gerais.
During the political crisis that began with the resignation of President Jânio da Silva Quadros on August 25, 1961, the parliamentary system was installed in Brazil. Tancredo Neves was appointed as Prime Minister by President João Goulart and served from September 1961 until July 1962. The crisis grew and the parliamentary system was abolished by plebiscite in January 1963. Goulart was overthrown in 1964 and Neves, who had up to that point been considered a moderate politician, became an opponent to the military regime in the Brazilian Democratic Movement (MDB). He was elected senator in 1978 and governor of Minas Gerais in 1982. In 1984, he was one of the leaders of the Diretas Já movement that demanded direct elections for President of Brazil. Neves was the candidate of the opposition to succeed President João Baptista de Oliveira Figueiredo. Their bid was not accepted.
On January 15, 1985 Tancredo Neves was elected to the Presidency by a majority of the members of Congress. However, just one day before he was scheduled to take the oath of office (March 15, 1985), Neves became severely ill. He suffered from abdominal complications and developed generalized infections. After seven operations, Tancredo Neves died on April 21, 1985. He was succeeded by José Sarney.
The Tancredo Neves International Airport in Belo Horizonte is named after him. The current governor of Minas Gerais, Aécio Neves, is the grandson of Tancredo Neves.
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