He began his career with the Brazilian Democratic Movement (Movimento Democrático Brasileiro), an opposition party to the military regime.

At the start of the 1980s, together with Tancredo Neves he helped in the founding of the Partido Popular in a centrist initiative to balance the Brazil political landscape.

Afterwards, he allied himself with Leonel Brizola and entered the Democratic Labour Party (PDT) where he remained for two decades.

In 2002, he supported Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the Brazilian Presidential election and was nominated to be Minister of Communications.

In 2013 he was listed as a member in the party of former senator and 2010 and 2014 presidential candidate Marina Silva, Sustainability Network (REDE).