Political jingles are a common feature of electoral campaigns around the world, but few countries can rival Brazil in the ubiquity, exposure, and importance of these catchy ditties — bigging up candidates for the lowest-ranking municipal offices all the way to the presidency.
Despite being used since the 1920s, the campaign jingles as Brazilians know them today emerged in the 1980s, at the end of the country’s military dictatorship. Amid the process of political opening, candidates from all ends of the political spectrum took to the streets to canvass, often scored by Volkswagen Kombis crawling through city streets blasting…