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Early in the campaign, Quadros staged a spectacular maneuver. To get the nomination of the powerful National Democratic Union (U.D.N.), he had earlier agreed to accept the U.D.N. vice presidential candidate as his running mate. Suddenly he rejected the U.D.N.'s man and withdrew from the race. Confusion reigned: a few hair-trigger army and air force officers tried to stage a coup as a means of forcing him to reconsider. The Veep candidate resigned, the U.D.N. agreed to share Quadros with other parties, and finally Quadros announced: "You have defeated me. I return." Return he did—free of all party commitments.
The results made political history. Quadros piled up 5,500,000 votes. 1,700,000 more than Lott, closest to an absolute majority (48%) in Brazil's multipartied history. Then he traveled to London for the eye-straightening operation that would have been denounced as silly vanity during the campaign, but was accepted as necessary for the President of a proud nation. He stayed away twelve weeks, so long that Brazilians coined their own slogan: "Where's Jânio?" But when he returned, only eleven days before inauguration, he was ready for action, complete with an imposing Cabinet of Brazil's best planners, builders, and conservative penny pinchers.
Economy Begins at Home. "I am going to wield the broom," he promised on inauguration night, "by the handle." Where Kubitschek ran his palace like an open house. Quadros ran it like a Marine barracks. He tossed Kubitschek's luxurious furnishings out of the executive offices, fired the fancy chef (he prefers beef, rice and beans), returned Kubitschek's $8,000 grand piano. "Economy," he said, "begins at home." Aides no longer walked; they ran. Locks barred the presidential doors, and red and green traffic lights informed ministers when to knock, when to wait. In the halls, guards appeared, toting their submachine guns. "This place gives me the creeps now," complained a palace reporter. "It's like Kafka."
It was also like São Paulo—on a giant scale. Loyal supporters seeking patronage soon discovered their mistake. "But after all, Mr. President," said one old politico, "where is my place in your government?" Replied Quadros, placing his hand on his breast: "Your place is here, in my heart." Quadros found a more practical place for Carlos Castello Branco, a political reporter whom he grilled for more than two hours on the frailties of 30 top politicians. "Castello, you have a dirty tongue," said Jânio after the grilling. Next day, he hired him as his press chief.