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Abstract
Brazil's governance of the COVID-19 pandemic has been described as nothing short of
tragic by several commentators. President Jair Bolsonaro's dangerous brew of neoliberal
authoritarianism, science denialism and ableism has plunged this country into catastrophe.
In this article we argue that this form (or lack) of public health governance can
best be described as governance without (central) government. We begin with an overview
of public health governance in the country before introducing the main theoretical
concepts that guide our analysis, namely the notions of 'government by exception'
and 'strategic ignorance'. Finally, we sketch the main features of this emerging form
of (non)governance of COVID-19. We highlight the new forms of solidarity and mutual
aid that have emerged in favelas and Indigenous communities, which have stepped in
to fill the void left by a limited federal presence. The article concludes by reflecting
on what this collapse of public health reveals about the limitations of democratic
governance in the age of Bolsonaro.