Brasília - As the Congress and civil society engage in heated discussions regarding a broad political reform aimed mainly at establishing some control over Brazilian political parties, the country's Election Board (Tribunal Superior Eleitoral) (TSE) has approved the registration (registro definitivo) for yet another political party. The new party is the Partido Municipalista Renovador (PMR). Its existence brings the total of political parties eligible to participate in the 2006 general elections to 2twenty-eight (28).

Pursuant to legislation on political parties, the PMR was able to prove that it had offices in at least nine states:Alagoas, Amazonas. Bahia, Mato Grosso, Paraíba, Rio Grande do Sul, Rondônia, São Paulo, Pará and the Distrito Federal. And it presented the TSE a petition in favor of its registration with 438,000 signatures.

Translator: Allen Bennett