The aim of this article is to analyze the theoretical questions related to democratic consolidation in Brazil, having in mind the controversies around this issue in political science. It develops the thesis that Dahl's polyarchy model, usually presented as the reference of stable democracies, does not adapt itself to analyzes of democratization processes in countries like Brazil, with an authoritarian past. The article therefore offers a comparative study of Brazil in relation to countries from South Europe, which are today considered consolidated democracies, observing to what extent the relation between parties and governments in Brazil tends to the consolidation of a "majority" model of democracy.
democratic consolidation; political legitimacy; government and parties
