Home

Peru vs. Brazil

Government

PeruBrazil
Country nameconventional long form: Republic of Peru

conventional short form: Peru

local long form: Republica del Peru

local short form: Peru

etymology: exact meaning is obscure, but the name may derive from a native word "biru" meaning "river"
conventional long form: Federative Republic of Brazil

conventional short form: Brazil

local long form: Republica Federativa do Brasil

local short form: Brasil

etymology: the country name derives from the brazilwood tree that used to grow plentifully along the coast of Brazil and that was used to produce a deep red dye
Government typepresidential republicfederal presidential republic
Capitalname: Lima

geographic coordinates: 12 03 S, 77 03 W

time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

etymology: the word "Lima" derives from the Spanish pronunciation of "Limaq," the native name for the valley in which the city was founded in 1535; "limaq" means "talker" in coastal Quechua and referred to an oracle that was situated in the valley but which was eventually destroyed by the Spanish and replaced with a church
name: Brasilia

geographic coordinates: 15 47 S, 47 55 W

time difference: UTC-3 (2 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

note: Brazil has four time zones, including one for the Fernando de Noronha Islands

etymology:
name bestowed on the new capital of Brazil upon its inauguration in 1960; previous Brazilian capitals had been Salvador from 1549 to 1763 and Rio de Janeiro from 1763 to 1960


Administrative divisions25 regions (regiones, singular - region) and 1 province* (provincia); Amazonas, Ancash, Apurimac, Arequipa, Ayacucho, Cajamarca, Callao, Cusco, Huancavelica, Huanuco, Ica, Junin, La Libertad, Lambayeque, Lima, Lima*, Loreto, Madre de Dios, Moquegua, Pasco, Piura, Puno, San Martin, Tacna, Tumbes, Ucayali

note: Callao, the largest port in Peru, is also referred to as a constitutional province, the only province of the Callao region
26 states (estados, singular - estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Acre, Alagoas, Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, Distrito Federal*, Espirito Santo, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para, Paraiba, Parana, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul, Rondonia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo, Sergipe, Tocantins
Independence28 July 1821 (from Spain)7 September 1822 (from Portugal)
National holidayIndependence Day, 28-29 July (1821)Independence Day, 7 September (1822)
Constitutionhistory: several previous; latest promulgated 29 December 1993, enacted 31 December 1993

amendments: proposed by Congress, by the president of the republic with the approval of the "Cabinet, " or by petition of at least 0.3% of voters; passage requires absolute majority approval by the Congress membership, followed by approval in a referendum; a referendum is not required if Congress approves the amendment by greater than two-thirds majority vote in each of two successive sessions; amended many times, last in 2021
history: several previous; latest ratified 5 October 1988

amendments: proposed by at least one third of either house of the National Congress, by the president of the republic, or by simple majority vote by more than half of the state legislative assemblies; passage requires at least three-fifths majority vote by both houses in each of two readings; constitutional provisions affecting the federal form of government, separation of powers, suffrage, or individual rights and guarantees cannot be amended; amended many times, last in 2020 (2021)
Legal systemcivil law systemcivil law; note - a new civil law code was enacted in 2002 replacing the 1916 code
Suffrage18 years of age; universal and compulsory until the age of 70voluntary between 16 to 18 years of age, over 70, and if illiterate; compulsory between 18 to 70 years of age; note - military conscripts by law cannot vote
Executive branchchief of state: President Jose Pedro CASTILLO Terrones (since 28 July 2021); First Vice President Dina Ercilia BOLUARTE Zegarra (since 28 July 2021); Second Vice President (vacant); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government: President Jose Pedro CASTILLO Terrones (since 28 July 2021); First Vice President Dina Ercilia BOLUARTE Zegarra (since 28 July 2021); Second Vice President (vacant)

cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president

elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for nonconsecutive terms); election last held on 11 April 2021 with a runoff on 6 June 2021 (next to be held in April 2026)

election results:
2021: Jose Pedro CASTILLO Terrones elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Jose Pedro CASTILLO Terrones (Free Peru) 18.9%, Keiko Sofia FUJIMORI Higuchi (Popular Force) 13.4%, Rafael LOPEZ ALIAGA Cazorla (Popular Renewal) 11.8%, Hernando DE SOTO Polar (Social Integration Party) 11.6%, Yonhy LESCANO Ancieta (Popular Action) 9.1%, Veronika MENDOZA Frisch (JP) 7.9%, Cesar ACUNA Peralta (APP) 6%, George FORSYTH Sommer (VN) 5.7%, Daniel Belizario URRESTI Elera (We Can Peru) 5.6%, other 10%; percent of vote second round - Jose Pedro CASTILLO Terrones (Free Peru) 50.1%, Keiko Sofia FUJIMORI Higuchi (Popular Force) 49.9%

2016: Pedro Pablo KUCZYNSKI Godard elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Keiko FUJIMORI Higuchi (Popular Force) 39.9%, Pedro Pablo KUCZYNSKI Godard (PPK) 21.1%, Veronika MENDOZA (Broad Front) 18.7%, Alfredo BARNECHEA (Popular Action) 7%, Alan GARCIA (APRA) 5.8%, other 7.5%; percent of vote in second round - Pedro Pablo KUCZYNSKI Godard 50.1%, Keiko FUJIMORI Higuchi 49.9%

note: President Martin Alberto VIZCARRA Cornejo assumed office after President Pedro Pablo KUCZYNSKI Godard resigned from office on 21 March 2018; after VIZCARRA was impeached on 9 November 2020, the constitutional line of succession led to the inauguration of the President of the Peruvian Congress, Manuel Arturo MERINO, as President of Peru on 10 November 2020; following his resignation only days later on 15 November 2020, Francisco Rafael SAGASTI Hochhausler - who had been elected by the legislature to be the new President of Congress on 16 November 2020 - was then sworn in as President of Peru on 17 November 2020 by line of succession and remained president until the inauguration of Jose Pedro CASTILLO Terrones, winner of the 2021 presidential election

note:
Prime Minister Guido BELLIDO Ugarte (since 29 July 2021) does not exercise executive power; this power rests with the president
chief of state: President Jair BOLSONARO (since 1 January 2019); Vice President Antonio Hamilton Martins MOURAO (since 1 January 2019); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government: President Jair BOLSONARO (since 1 January 2019); Vice President Antonio Hamilton Martins MOURAO (since 1 January 2019)

cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president

elections/appointments: president and vice president directly elected on the same ballot by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a single 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 7 October 2018 with runoff on 28 October 2018 (next to be held in October 2022)

election results:
2018:  Jair BOLSONARO elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Jair BOLSONARO (PSL) 46%, Fernando HADDAD (PT) 29.3%, Ciro GOMEZ (PDT) 12.5%, Geraldo ALCKMIN (PSDB) 4.8%, other 7.4%; percent of vote in second round - Jair BOLSONARO (PSL) 55.1%, Fernando HADDAD (PT) 44.9%

2014:  Dilma ROUSSEFF reelected president in second round; percent of vote - Dilma ROUSSEFF (PT) 51.6%, Aecio NEVES (PSDB) 48.4%; note - on 12 May 2016, Brazil's Senate voted to hold an impeachment trial of President Dilma ROUSSEFF, who was then suspended from her executive duties; Vice President Michel TEMER took over as acting president; on 31 August 2016 the Senate voted 61-20 in favor of conviction and her removal from office; TEMER served as president for the remainder of ROUSSEFF's term, which ended 1 January 2019
Legislative branchdescription: unicameral Congress of the Republic of Peru or Congreso de la Republica del Peru (130 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by closed party-list proportional representation vote to serve single 5-year terms)

elections: last held on 11 April 2021 (next to be held in April 2026)

election results: percent of vote by party/coalition - Free Peru 14.02%, Popular Force 11.17%, AP 9.22%, Popular Renewal 9.13%, APP 7.61%, Avanza Pais 7.40%, JP 6.63%, We Are Peru 6.02%, We Can Peru 5.73%, Purple Party 5.31%; seats by party/coalition - Free Peru 37, Popular Force 24, AP 16, APP 15, Popular Renewal 13, Avanza Pais 7, We Are Peru 5, We Can Peru 5, JP 4, Purple Party 4; composition - men 96, women 34, percent of women 26.2%
description: bicameral National Congress or Congresso Nacional consists of:
Federal Senate or Senado Federal (81 seats; 3 members each from 26 states and 3 from the federal district directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 8-year terms, with one-third and two-thirds of the membership elected alternately every 4 years)
Chamber of Deputies or Camara dos Deputados (513 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by party-list proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms)

elections:
Federal Senate - last held on 7 October 2018 for two-thirds of the Senate (next to be held in October 2022 for one-third of the Senate)
Chamber of Deputies - last held on 7 October 2018 (next to be held in October 2022)

election results:
Federal Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PMDB 7, PP 5, REDE 5, DEM 4, PSDB 4, PSDC 4, PSL 4, PT 4, PDT 2, PHS 2, PPS 2, PSB 2, PTB 2, Podemos 1, PR 1, PRB 1, PROS 1, PRP 1, PSC 1, SD 1; composition - men 70, women 11, percent of women 13.6%    
Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PT 56, PSL 52, PP 37, PMDB 34, PSDC 34, PR 33, PSB 32, PRB 30, DEM 29, PSDB 29, PDT 28, SD 13, Podemos 11, PSOL 10, PTB 10, PCdoB 9, NOVO 8, PPS 8, PROS 8, PSC 8, Avante 7, PHS 6, Patriota 5, PRP 4, PV 4, PMN 3, PTC 2, DC 1, PPL 1, REDE 1; composition - men 462, women 51, percent of women 9.9%; total National Congress percent of women 10.4%
Judicial branchhighest courts: Supreme Court (consists of 16 judges and divided into civil, criminal, and constitutional-social sectors)

judge selection and term of office: justices proposed by the National Board of Justice (a 7-member independent body), nominated by the president, and confirmed by the Congress; justices can serve until mandatory retirement at age 70

subordinate courts: Court of Constitutional Guarantees; Superior Courts or Cortes Superiores; specialized civil, criminal, and mixed courts; 2 types of peace courts in which professional judges and selected members of the local communities preside
highest courts: Supreme Federal Court or Supremo Tribunal Federal (consists of 11 justices)

judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the president and approved by the Federal Senate; justices appointed to serve until mandatory retirement at age 75

subordinate courts: Tribunal of the Union, Federal Appeals Court, Superior Court of Justice, Superior Electoral Court, regional federal courts; state court system
Political parties and leaders

Alliance for Progress (Alianza para el Progreso) or APP [Cesar ACUNA Peralta]
American Popular Revolutionary Alliance or APRA [Cesar TRELLES Lara]
Broad Front (Frente Amplio; also known as El Frente Amplio por Justicia, Vida y Libertad) (coalition includes Nuevo Peru [Veronika MENDOZA], Tierra y Libertad [Marco ARANA Zegarra], and Fuerza Social [Susana VILLARAN de la Puente]
Free Peru (Peru Libre) [Vladimir CERRON Rojas]
National Solidarity (Solidaridad Nacional) or SN [Luis CASTANEDA Lossio]
National Victory (Victoria Nacional) or VN [George FORSYTH Sommer]
Peru Posible or PP (coalition includes Accion Popular and Somos Peru) [Alejandro TOLEDO Manrique]
Peruvian Aprista Party (Partido Aprista Peruano) or PAP [Javier VELASQUEZ Quesquen] (also referred to by its original name Alianza Popular Revolucionaria Americana or APRA)
Peruvian Nationalist Party [Ollanta HUMALA]
Peruvians for Change (Peruanos Por el Kambio) or PPK [Pedro Pablo KUCZYNSKI]
Popular Action (Accion Popular) or AP [Mesias GUEVARA Amasifuen]
Popular Christian Party (Partido Popular Cristiano) or PPC [Lourdes FLORES Nano]
Popular Force (Fuerza Popular; formerly Fuerza 2011) [Keiko FUJIMORI Higuchi]
Popular Renewal (Renovacion Popular) [Rafael LOPEZ ALIAGA]
Purple Party (Partido Morado) [Julio Armando GUZMAN Caceres]
Social Integration Party (Avanza Pais - Partido de Integracion Social) [Pedro CENAS Casamayor]
Together For Peru (Juntos por el Peru) or JP [Robert SANCHEZ Palomino]
We Are Peru (Somos Peru) [Patricia LI]
We Can Peru (Podemos Peru) [Jose Leon LUNA Galvez]

Avante [Luis TIBE] (formerly Labor Party of Brazil or PTdoB) 
Brazilian Communist Party or PCB [Ivan Martins PINHEIRO]
Brazilian Democratic Movement Party or PMDB [Michel TEMER]
Brazilian Labor Party or PTB [Cristiane BRASIL]
Brazilian Renewal Labor Party or PRTB [Jose Levy FIDELIX da Cruz]
Brazilian Republican Party or PRB [Marcos Antonio PEREIRA]
Brazilian Social Democracy Party or PSDB [Tasso JEREISSATI]
Brazilian Socialist Party or PSB [Carlos Roberto SIQUEIRA de Barros]
Christian Democracy or DC [Jose Maria EYMAEL] (formerly Christian Social Democratic Party or PSDC)
Christian Labor Party or PTC [Daniel TOURINHO]
Communist Party of Brazil or PCdoB [Jose Renato RABELO]
Democratic Labor Party or PDT [Carlos Roberto LUPI]
The Democrats or DEM [Jose AGRIPINO] (formerly Liberal Front Party or PFL)
Free Homeland Party or PPL [Sergio RUBENS]
Green Party or PV [Jose Luiz PENNA]
Humanist Party of Solidarity or PHS [Eduardo MACHADO]
National Mobilization Party or PMN [Telma RIBEIRO dos Santos]
New Party or NOVO [Moises JARDIM]
Party of the Republic or PR [Alfredo NASCIMENTO]
Patriota [Adilson BARROSO Oliveira] (formerly National Ecologic Party or PEN)
Podemos [Renata ABREU] (formerly National Labor Party or PTN) 
Popular Socialist Party or PPS [Roberto Joao Pereira FREIRE]
Progressive Party or PP [Ciro NOGUEIRA]
Progressive Republican Party or PRP [Ovasco Roma Altimari RESENDE]
Republican Social Order Party or PROS [Euripedes JUNIOR]
Social Christian Party or PSC [Vitor Jorge Abdala NOSSEIS]
Social Democratic Party or PSD [Guilherme CAMPOS]
Social Liberal Party or PSL [Luciano Caldas BIVAR]
Socialism and Freedom Party or PSOL [Luiz ARAUJO]
Solidarity or SD [Paulo PEREIRA DA SILVA]
Sustainability Network or REDE [Marina SILVA]
United Socialist Workers' Party or PSTU [Jose Maria DE ALMEIDA]
Workers' Cause Party or PCO [Rui Costa PIMENTA]
Workers' Party or PT [Gleisi HOFFMAN]
International organization participationAPEC, BIS, CAN, CD, CELAC, EITI (compliant country), FAO, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA, Mercosur (associate), MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, Pacific Alliance, PCA, SICA (observer), UN, UNAMID, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNISFA, UNMISS, UNOCI, UN Security Council (temporary), UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTOAfDB (nonregional member), BIS, BRICS, CAN (associate), CD, CELAC, CPLP, FAO, FATF, G-15, G-20, G-24, G-5, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAES, LAIA, LAS (observer), Mercosur, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS, OECD (enhanced engagement), OPANAL, OPCW, Paris Club (associate), PCA, SICA (observer), UN, UNASUR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNISFA, UNITAR, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the USchief of mission: Ambassador Hugo DE ZELA Martínez (since 8 July 2019)

chancery: 1700 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036

telephone: [1] (202) 833-9860 through 9869

FAX: [1] (202) 659-8124

email address and website:
Webadmin@embassyofperu.us

consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Hartford (CT), Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Paterson (NJ), San Francisco, Washington DC
chief of mission: Ambassador Nestor Jose FORSTER, Jr. (since 23 December 2020)

chancery: 3006 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone: [1] (202) 238-2700

FAX: [1] (202) 238-2827

email address and website:
http://washington.itamaraty.gov.br/en-us/Main.xml

consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Hartford (CT), Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, Washington, DC
Diplomatic representation from the USchief of mission: Ambassador Lisa Suzanne KENNA (since 18 March 2021)

embassy: Avenida La Encalada, Cuadra 17 s/n, Surco, Lima 33

mailing address: 3230 Lima Place, Washington DC  20521-3230

telephone: [51] (1) 618-2000

FAX: [51] (1) 618-2724

email address and website:
LimaACS@state.gov

https://pe.usembassy.gov/
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Douglas A. KONEFF (since July 2021)

embassy: SES - Avenida das Nacoes, Quadra 801, Lote 3, 70403-900 - Brasilia, DF

mailing address: 7500 Brasilia Place, Washington DC  20521-7500

telephone: [55] (61) 3312-7000

FAX: [55] (61) 3225-9136

email address and website:
BrasilliaACS@state.gov

https://br.usembassy.gov/

consulate(s) general: Recife, Porto Alegre, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo

branch office(s): Belo Horizonte
Flag descriptionthree equal, vertical bands of red (hoist side), white, and red with the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms features a shield bearing a vicuna (representing fauna), a cinchona tree (the source of quinine, signifying flora), and a yellow cornucopia spilling out coins (denoting mineral wealth); red recalls blood shed for independence, white symbolizes peacegreen with a large yellow diamond in the center bearing a blue celestial globe with 27 white five-pointed stars; the globe has a white equatorial band with the motto ORDEM E PROGRESSO (Order and Progress); the current flag was inspired by the banner of the former Empire of Brazil (1822-1889); on the imperial flag, the green represented the House of Braganza of Pedro I, the first Emperor of Brazil, while the yellow stood for the Habsburg Family of his wife; on the modern flag the green represents the forests of the country and the yellow rhombus its mineral wealth (the diamond shape roughly mirrors that of the country); the blue circle and stars, which replaced the coat of arms of the original flag, depict the sky over Rio de Janeiro on the morning of 15 November 1889 - the day the Republic of Brazil was declared; the number of stars has changed with the creation of new states and has risen from an original 21 to the current 27 (one for each state and the Federal District)

note: one of several flags where a prominent component of the design reflects the shape of the country; other such flags are those of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Eritrea, and Vanuatu
National anthemname: "Himno Nacional del Peru" (National Anthem of Peru)

lyrics/music: Jose DE LA TORRE Ugarte/Jose Bernardo ALZEDO

note: adopted 1822; the song won a national anthem contest
name: "Hino Nacional Brasileiro" (Brazilian National Anthem)

lyrics/music: Joaquim Osorio Duque ESTRADA/Francisco Manoel DA SILVA

note: music adopted 1890, lyrics adopted 1922; the anthem's music, composed in 1822, was used unofficially for many years before it was adopted
International law organization participationaccepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdictionhas not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
National symbol(s)vicuna (a camelid related to the llama); national colors: red, whiteSouthern Cross constellation; national colors: green, yellow, blue
Citizenshipcitizenship by birth: yes

citizenship by descent only: yes

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 2 years
citizenship by birth: yes

citizenship by descent only: yes

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 4 years

Source: CIA Factbook