Câmaras municipais e distanciamento social: proposições de vereadores de capitais sobre medidas restritivas durante a pandemia

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to analyze the behavior of city councilors regarding the process of restricting and easing activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. It focuses on recommendations and bills presented in six Brazilian state capitals: Belo Horizonte, Campo Grande, Curitiba, Natal, Rio de Janeiro, and Teresina. The aim was to observe whether these proposals sought to complement the restrictions implemented by the Executive Branch, ease the suspended activities, or impose further restrictions. Several factors that could explain the legislators' actions were analyzed, such as their previous connection to the activities, their alignment with the mayor's political party, their ideological position, among others. The main conclusion is that city councilors predominantly acted complementing the restrictions: seeking assistance for the affected activities without proposing their relaxation. The analysis of the authors' connections to the addressed activities showed that this was an important variable in justifying the presentation of the proposals. Additionally, the analysis of ideological variables indicated that Bolsonaro-aligned city councilors presented more easing measures, while left-wing city councilors presented more complementary measures.