Campaign strategies used in free airtime in proportional elections

The article contends that Brazil's "Horario Gratuito de Propaganda Eleitora l" (under which parties are granted free airtime for political campaign adv ertisements) can be contrasted with the Brazilian electoral system's tenden cy to produce purely individualistic legislative campaigns. The central hyp othesis is that the way in which Brazilian political parties organize their candidates' participation in these time slots has substantial consequences both for their pubic image as well as far their poll performance. The firs t section of the article defines the more general characteristics of politi cal representation in Brazil within the framework of traditional political science interpretations. The second section underscores the growing importa nce of studies on election campaigns and party presence in the media. withi n this context, the evolution of the HGPE's historical importance as a camp aign space is examined. The third section presents our model of analysis of the HGPE, highlighting its effects on relations between parties,on the one hand, and their candidates and potential voters, on the other. Ria de Jane iro's proportional elections of 1994 and 1996 are taken as a case study. Th e article concludes that the HGPE acts as a tool for informally ranking par ty lists in Brazil.