Centrão

'big centre' – Portuguese pronunciation: [se᷉'tɾɐ᷉w᷉]) refers to a group of political parties that do not have a specific or consistent ideological orientation and aim at ensuring proximity to the executive branch in order to guarantee advantages and allow them to distribute privileges through clientelistic networks.

Despite its name, the Centrão is not a centrist political group,[1] generally composed of parliamentarians from the "lower clergy [pt]"[2] and big tent parties,[3] who act according to their own interests, linked to cronyism and logrolling.

[10] The Centrão would gain prominence again with the formation of the "blocão" (big bloc), a group created in 2014 by Eduardo Cunha, then leader of the PMDB, due to the dissatisfaction of the ruling base deputies with President Dilma Rousseff, who paid little attention to political articulation with the parliamentarians.

[12] From then on, the Centrão would play a key role in the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, removed from office in May 2016, and in making important decisions for the Michel Temer government [pt].

[1] In Temer's government, on the other hand, the group would act to block the two criminal charges against the president, avoid a probable removal from office, and approve his reforms through bargaining, such as the distribution of positions and promises of ministries, the release of parliamentary amendments, funds and bills, and other benefits.