Brazil is currently one of the worst countries in the world when it comes to the presence of women in politics, and the worst in Latin America. Despite often having a minimal chance of success, every two years, a huge number of women run for office. They include teachers, small businesswomen, police officers, and community leaders, who learn to balance politics with work and family life. They invest a lot of time and energy in this endeavor, but only a handful manage to get elected. As a result, just 17.7% of seats in the House of Representatives are currently held by women, and 82.3% are held by men. In practice, men end up making the decisions in all areas, including those that concern women. Based on 188 interviews with 102 candidates (79 women and 23 men) and official data from the Superior Electoral Court, the book, “Candidatas: os primeiros passos das mulheres na política do Brasil” (“Female candidates: Women’s first steps in Brazilian politics”), published by FGV Press, draws on the academic literature to analyze evidence extracted directly from the women who seek to challenge the status quo. It presents the experiences of empowered black, white, young, and old women, from all regions of the country and all parties, with very different backgrounds. Moreover, the book presents the voices of these women. Divided into 10 chapters, the book covers everything from the initial factors that make them run for office, their choice of party and relationship with it, election campaigns, political violence, post-election moments, and what happens when they are elected. Given such a large number of interviews, this is a rare research effort in Brazil, which makes it possible to present a broad mosaic of female candidates’ perspectives, the opportunities they had, and their challenges in this process. Even though it offers a comprehensive analysis of this subject, the book is written in a light and simple style, to suit the academic public, people in politics, and other people with an interest in the topic, especially women who have been increasingly discussing the issue of occupying spaces of power. Most of the cases involve first-time candidates. Some of them are well-known and others are more obscure. The examples help explain how women take the first steps in their political careers, together with their mistakes and successes, victories and defeats. The candidates’ stories blend to present how women from various parts of Brazil decided to enter politics and how they continue to face obstacles in their parties, on the streets, and at the ballot box. They all lack time and money, but have plenty of courage, so they carry on fighting.

Malu A. C. Gatto is Associate Professor of Latin American Politics at the Institute of the Americas at University College London (UCL). Her work explores questions about political behaviour, representation, policy-making, and gender and politics with a regional focus on Latin America, especially Brazil. She is the author of Resistance to Gender Quotas in Latin America (Oxford University Press, 2025) and several articles published in Comparative Political Studies, the British Journal of Political Science, Party Politics, Democratization, and Politics & Gender, among others. ​ Débora Thomé is political scientist, writer, and feminist activist from Brazil, currently undertaking post-doctoral research at Fundacao Getulio Vargas (FGV) in Sao Paulo (Brazil), with a PhD in Universidade Federal Fluminense (Brazil). Her research centers on candidate recruitment and representation, political ambition, and gender bias in institutions. She is the author of Mulheres e Poder - Histórias, ideias e indicadores (FGV Editora, 2018) and several articles in English and Portuguese.