Allies of (PL) scored a victory with the crisis and used the retreat of the government (PT) to try to strengthen themselves after setbacks, such as the risk of him becoming a defendant. In the government camp, the alert caused by the opposing mobilization on the networks exposed challenges for the plan to win a new mandate in 2026.
The main weakness admitted by members of the government is in communication, with the left’s already well-known difficulty in standing up to conservatives in the digital sphere.
The one from the federal deputy (PL-MG), which went viral with speculation about the taxation of banking transactions, pointed to the urgency of reaction in the area, now handed over by Lula to the marketer, who.
“The Pix episode symbolizes a turning point in Brazil’s political battle and revealed a disturbing truth that the left itself publicly admitted: the Lula government is weak”, says the federal deputy (PL-SP), who sees a climate being created for demonstrations by .
The Pix episode occurred after a series of disappointments for Bolsonarism, which include the legal siege of the 40 people indicted by the Federal Police. One of them, the general, vice-president on Bolsonaro’s ticket in 2022, was arrested last month, against a military officer with the highest rank in the military.
At that point, the group was already bitter about the meltdown of the amnesty agenda for those involved in the . The flag in November, after the attack in which he blew himself up in front of the (Supreme Federal Court), reigniting pressure for punishment for undemocratic acts.
On the other hand, the right in Brazil sees chances of benefiting from new winds at the international level, with the inauguration, this Monday (20), of , and the announcement of the end of its checking program and on Instagram .
“Now we will have a little more freedom to carry out political discussions on the networks”, says the state deputy (PL-SP). “The Pix issue only channeled the widespread anger that the population is feeling. It reached depoliticized people and united Greeks and Trojans against Lula.”
For him, who is close to the Bolsonaro family, decisions by the STF minister reinforce the impression of persecution and end up uniting the base.
“Bolsonaro has not lost political capital. There are things that numb feelings a little [dos bolsonaristas]but we continue with the [ex-]president. We have the possibility of returning to power, yes. In his absence, my bet is on[deputy]”, he states.
For Zambelli —who, like Diniz, traveled to the US inauguration—, the right displays resilience in moments of adversity. “Even silently, we are not backing down,” she says, remembering that Bolsonaro scores in polls for 2026 — he works for , despite the remote chance.
The senator (PT-AP), leader of the Lula government in Congress, compromises the Pix crisis by using football metaphors. “We are competing in a championship of straight points. The team can even lose a game, but they cannot lose the championship”, he says.
In the split on the left surrounding the repeal of the Federal Revenue’s rule to monitor transactions, announced on Wednesday (15), Randolfe sided with those who considered the measure to be the right one, since, “in an inglorious game, it is better to end it straight away and move on to something else.”
Other currents assess that the government demonstrated a lack of momentum, was slow and opened a flank to the , something worrying from an electoral point of view. Federal deputy Zeca Dirceu (-PR) said the “situation is terrible” and had “zero patience” with the government.
Randolfe says that the episode is over and that the government “has much more to show” than the opposition did when it occupied the Planalto. “The information about what we are doing for the people has to reach people”, he states, preaching the fight against fake news as the only way out.
For (-SP), leader of the PSOL-Rede federation bench in the Chamber, the priority is —a topic that the right exploits in order to accuse censorship. The deputy calls the circulation of a , talking about the creation of supposed taxes on Pix and pets.
“The lesson that remains is that the government needs more agile communication, with predictability and a containment plan. It is necessary to speak people’s language and clearly, so that they do not get lost in fallacious narratives”, says Erika, to who Planalto “played a hand to the extreme right” by not coming forward to explain the IRS rule. “It was a huge damage.”
