Tabata Amaral

Tabata Claudia Amaral de Pontes (; born 14 November 1993) is a Brazilian politician and education activist. She is currently a federal deputy for the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB) representing the state of São Paulo. Throughout 2019, she was a vice-leader of the PDT and its associated political coalition.

As an activist for education in Brazil, Amaral co-founded two organisations: Vontade de Aprender Olímpica, which prepares Brazilian students to compete in international olympiads, and Movimento Mapa Educação, which promotes education equality in Brazil. She also co-founded the political organisation Acredito, which provides funding for progressive candidates running for the first time in Brazil.

Before attending university, Amaral represented Brazil in five international science competitions. She then graduated from Harvard University, with a degree in astrophysics and political science. She was also a columnist for Rádio CBN and Glamour magazine.

Early life and education Tabata Amaral de Pontes is the daughter of Maria Renilda Amaral Pires, a domestic worker, and Olionaldo Francisco de Pontes, a bus conductor. She has a younger brother, Allan. They were raised in , a poor neighborhood located in the South Zone of São Paulo, on the outskirts of the city.

Tabata Amaral received her primary education in local public schools. In the sixth grade, at the age of 12, Amaral participated in the 2005 edition of the Brazilian Public School Mathematics Olympiad (OBMEP), and won a silver medal on her first attempt. The following year, due to her gold medal and strong academic performance, she obtained a full scholarship at Colégio ETAPA, a private school in São Paulo, where she completed her secondary education. In the following years, she represented Brazil in international chemistry, astronomy and astrophysics Olympiads.

After finishing high school, Amaral chose to attend Harvard University over offers from Yale University, Columbia University, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, California Institute of Technology, and the University of São Paulo. While at Harvard, she wrote a senior thesis on educational reforms in Brazilian municipalities, which won the Kenneth Maxwell Senior Thesis Prize in Brazilian studies, and the Eric Firth Prize for the best essay on the theme of democratic ideals. In 2016, she graduated from Harvard magna cum laude with a degree in Government and Astrophysics.

Activism After graduating, Amaral returned to Brazil to work as an education activist.

In 2014, Amaral co-founded the education advocacy organisation Movimento Mapa Educação (the Education Map Movement) with Lígia Stocche and Renan Ferreirinha. She received the sixth highest vote total of any candidate in the state of São Paulo, with 264,450 votes. At the time of her election, she was a member of the Democratic Labor Party (PDT).

She served on the Education Commission, the Commission for the Defense of Women's Rights, and as an alternate member of the Science and Technology, Communication and Informatics Commission. From February 20, 2019, until April 25, 2019, she was the vice-leader of the PDT Block, the electoral coalition of the PDT. Amaral broke party lines together with 8 other deputies of the PDT to vote in favour of the reform, stating that the reforms would be beneficial for education in Brazil. As a result, in September 2021, Amaral announced that she had left the PDT to join the PSB (Partido Socialista Brasileiro ~ Brazilian Socialist Party).

Controversies In July 2019, the magazines Veja revealed that Amaral hired her then-boyfriend, Daniel Alejandro Martínez, to work on her 2018 election campaign. The services were provided between August and October 2018. Amaral's team did not present the results of the services provided by Martínez.

Personal life Beginning in 2019, Amaral has been in a relationship with fellow Socialist Party member, former federal deputy from the state of Pernambuco, and current mayor of Recife João Henrique Campos. They married on 21 February 2026.

Electoral history

Selected honours BBC 100 inspiring and influential women (2019) Time 100 Next (2019)