Administrative reforms implemented in the last two decades in Brazil have been influenced by the New Public Management (NPM) literature. This manuscript compares and critically analyzes the administrative, social, and political implications of reforms in the executive branch of three Brazilian states. Based on the concept of global managerialism, we consider the impact of NPM-based reforms and the corresponding dissemination of managerialism within governments and public organizations. We conclude by highlighting the threat of global managerialism to democratic institutions in an era of globalization. Copyright (C) 2010 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.