Tiririca the clown can take his seat in Brazil's Congress after all, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Francisco Oliveira, who performs as Tiririca, passed a literacy test after opponents alleged he couldn't read or write as law requires of congressmen, said Aloisio Sergio Rezende Silveira, a judge for a regional electoral court in Sao Paulo.
Oliveira was elected to the lower house of Congress in October after appearing in festive campaign ads in full costume. He claimed he didn’t know what federal lawmakers did, and he said voters wouldn't be worse off if he was elected.
“What does a federal representative do? I don't know, but vote for me and I'll tell you,” Oliveira said in one of the ads, according to a Portuguese-to-English translation.
In a November literacy test, Oliveira demonstrated "a minimum of intellect concerning the content of a text despite difficulties in writing,” the BBC quoted the judge as saying.
"The electoral court considers someone to be ineligible only if they are totally illiterate," the judge said, according to the BBC.
Oliveira, who will represent the state of Sao Paulo, received 1,353,820 votes - the most for any lower-house candidate in October’s election, according to The Economist.
where's the punchline?
maybe she'll drive a clown car to work.
We have many clowns in the the U.S. congress. I don't see any problem for this guy.
Don't stare at the deadlights
I see nothing wrong with electing an illiterate moron to office; we've been doing it for decades. It hasn't hurt us much, despite the best efforts of Carter, Clinton, and Obama to destroy the US. Brazil could do much worse, as we have, and still survive.
I'm every nightmare you've ever had. I'm your worst dream come true. I'm everything you ever were afraid of.
Wow – illiterate? I can see someone having political problems with Carter, Clinton, and Obama, but to argue that these three are anything but intelligent suggests that you are, well, a moron. All three are graduates of prestigious universities, excellent speakers, and, by all accounts, well-read. Much more than can be said about the ones that you left off the list and can be assumed to support (Reagan, Bush, Palin).
OK – Bush graduated from Yale, but we all have heard him speak...
dr bad
Me? Oh you are priceless Brat! I am eternal, child. I am the eater of worlds, and of children. And you are next!
HAHAHHA 😀
There's something terribly wrong here in Derry, and you know it!
I Don,t Think There Is Nothing Wrong With Any Body Being A Clown If They Want Come To My House, Oh By The Way Don,t Speak Ill About The Three Presidents That I Have Always Admired.
Want a balloon?
Maybe this clown can help our former clown to find the WMDs?
Pennywise, thats great. We all float down here!
At least they voted. That has to mean something. Right?
Al Frankin is a clown from SNL and look at him. He is a US Senator.
BUSH WAS THE BIGGEST CLOWN OUR GOVERMENT EVER SAW
I know what you mean. I loved it when he winked at the queen. It was like someone gave the old crow electric shock. I laughed so hard my side hurt.
@Terrie i agree with u totally.
@Veritas, Bush? Really? But he was the "decider."
We should make this guy president!!! That will tell the government what we think of them.