The Business Elites and the Brazilian Political Transition:: A Case Study of the National Campaign for Free Enterprise

Abstract

The late 1970s and early 1980s were characterized by a global wave of political transitions, ranging from the end of colonial rule in Africa and Asia to the collapse of authoritarian regimes in Europe. In Latin America, various dictatorships were in their waning days, despite maintaining high levels of violence. The Brazilian case presented a complex transitionary process: while an emerging social movement strained the boundaries of the "slow, gradual, and secure" opening (abertura), it lacked the leverage to impose a radical transformation of the dictatorial project. This article analyzes how a specific segment of civil society—the business elites—through the National Campaign for Free Enterprise (Campanha Nacional Pela Livre Iniciativa), advanced a vision for post-dictatorship Brazil that sought to preserve a militarized political framework while institutionalizing a liberal economy.