Vargas era

In Brazil's history, the Vargas era (Portuguese: Era Vargas; Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈɛɾɐ ˈvaʁɡɐs]) is the period from 1930 to 1946 when the country was governed by Getúlio Vargas. The period is subdivided into the Second Brazilian Republic, from 1930 to 1937, and the Third Brazilian Republic, or Estado Novo, from 1937 to 1946.

The Brazilian Revolution of 1930 marked the end of the First Brazilian Republic. The coup deposed President Washington Luís and blocked the swearing-in of president-elect Júlio Prestes on the grounds that the 1930 election had been rigged by his supporters. The 1891 Constitution was abrogated, the National Congress dissolved, and the provisional military junta ceded power to Vargas. Federal intervention in state governments increased, and the country' political landscape was altered by suppressing the traditional oligarchies of the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais.

After assuming power, Vargas governed by decree as head of the provisional government instituted by the revolution from 1930 to 1934, before the adoption of a new constitution. Following the adoption of the Constitution of 1934, which was drafted and approved by the National Constituent Assembly of 1933–1934, Vargas was elected by Congress and governed as president with a democratically elected legislature. Vargas' presidency was to end in 1938, however, in order to stay in power, he imposed a new dictatorial constitution in a coup d'état and shut down the legislature to rule Brazil as a dictator, thus initiating the Estado Novo.

The ousting of Vargas and the Estado Novo regime in 1945 led to the restoration of democracy in Brazil with the adoption of a new democratic constitution in 1946, marking the end of the Vargas era and the beginning of the Fourth Brazilian Republic.