A heteroidentificação de candidatos pardos em cotas raciais: uma análise constitucional dos limites à autodeclaração à luz da jurisprudência do Supremo Tribunal Federal

Abstract

This article analyzes the constitutional tension between self-declaration and heteroidentification procedures for pardo (brown/mixed-race) candidates accessing racial quotas in Brazil. The objective is to investigate the jurisprudence of the Supreme Federal Court (STF) on the subject, examining the limits imposed on state control to curb fraud without violating fundamental rights, through bibliographic and documentary research. The analysis shows that the STF, notably in ADC 41 and Theme 1.091, validated hetero-identification based on the phenotypic criterion as a tool to ensure the policy's effectiveness, while establishing procedural guarantees such as the right to a full defense and contradictory hearing (due process). It is argued, however, that this procedural framework is insufficient to resolve the underlying issue: the paradox of attempting to objectively assess an identity that the State itself (via IBGE) defines by its characteristic of miscegenation and fluidity. It is concluded that the current model, although legal, generates an insurmountable legal uncertainty for pardo candidates, revealing that formal protection does not solve the material complexity of the issue and pointing to the need for improving the verification criteria.