Eighty percent of Brazilians support lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 18 to 16, according to a Datafolha poll released Saturday. The survey, commissioned by the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, found 18 percent opposed to the change, up from 17 percent in June. Two percent said they did not know and 1 percent were indifferent; the shifts fall within the poll's two-point margin of error.
Lowest support in two decades
Despite the overwhelming majority, the 80 percent figure marks the lowest level of support in Datafolha's historical series, which began in 2003. The peak came in April 2015, when 87 percent favored the reduction and only 11 percent opposed it. The decline suggests a gradual softening of public opinion even as the measure remains broadly popular.
Congressional backdrop
The poll arrives as Brazil's Congress (the bicameral National Congress) debates a proposed constitutional amendment (PEC) to lower the age of criminal majority. The measure has stalled repeatedly since 2015, when a similar proposal passed a special committee but failed to reach the required three-fifths supermajority in the Chamber of Deputies. Proponents argue that 16- and 17-year-olds who commit violent crimes should face adult penalties; opponents, including the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) and child-welfare advocates, say the change would violate the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and fail to address root causes of youth crime.
Methodology
Datafolha interviewed 2,520 people aged 16 and older in person on October 13 and 14. The margin of error is two percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.