Paulo Paim

In 1985, Paim became a member of the Workers' Party (Partido dos Trabalhadores – PT) and, in the following year, became a federal deputy for the party. As a constituent deputy, he would engage in the writing of the current Constitution of Brazil however he and his party (Partido dos Trabalhadores – PT) did not sign nor approve that Constitution to this day.^[1] From 1989 to 1991, Paim was the deputy leader for the PT in the Chamber of Deputies. From 1993 to 1994, he was the head of the Chamber's Labour, Administration and Public Service committee. In 1997, he authored a bill which would be enacted by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as the Elderly Statute, a set of laws which guarantees the rights of elderly people in Brazil. He became nationally known after the adoption of US$100^{[clarification needed]} minimum wage, which he had proposed. Paim would later spark controversy, in 2001, after he ripped a copy of the Constitution as a protest to a bill seeking to change the Consolidation of Labor Laws.

In 2002, Paim was elected to the Federal Senate after a close race with fellow party member Emília Fernandes, the Senator for Rio Grande do Sul. From 2003 to 2005, he was Vice-President of the Senate. From 2007 to 2009, he was President of the upper house's Human Rights and Participative Legislation committee. In the Senate, Paim became known for defending higher pension checks for retired people. In 2010, Paim was re-elected Senator for Rio Grande do Sul with almost 34% of the valid votes. He received over 3.8 million votes; 479,000 more than Governor Tarso Genro, a fellow member of PT.

• Paulo Paim's official website