Ulysses Guimaraes; Brazilian Leader

Ulysses Guimaraes, a leading foe of Brazil’s military dictatorship and one of the architects of this country’s democratic movement, has been killed in a helicopter crash.

The bodies of Guimaraes, 76, former Cabinet minister Severo Gomes, their wives and the pilot were recovered Monday off Angra dos Reis, a coastal resort east of Sao Paulo, the air force said.

The helicopter disappeared shortly after leaving Angra in heavy rain and wind Monday afternoon en route to Sao Paulo, where Guimaraes lived.

Guimaraes, who was serving his 11th term in Brazil’s congress, played a key role in overseeing the return to civilian rule in Latin America’s largest country. He helped draft the 1988 constitution, which replaced a military-dictated charter.

He was the former head of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, the biggest opposition group during the 1964-85 right-wing military regime.

In 1973, Guimaraes mounted what knew would be a losing presidential campaign. He knew that he would lose to an army general because the outcome was determined by a military-controlled electoral college. But the campaign renewed pressure for a return to civilian government.

In 1987, he presided over the convention that rewrote the Brazilian constitution, replacing one that had been written by the military. In 1989, when Brazilians were finally able to vote directly for their president, Guimaraes, running at the head of the Democratic Movement Party, finished a poor fifth to the winner, Fernando Collor de Mello.

Guimaraes was a leader of the campaign to impeach Collor de Mello, who was ousted by congress last month on charges of corruption.