Minister of the (Attorney General of the Union), is appointed as favorite for the open vacancy in the (Supreme Federal Court) with , but faces a campaign from court ministers in favor of the senator (PSD-MG).
by the president of the Senate, (União Brasil-AP), the movement of magistrates intensified in the second half of 2025, with the proximity of the president of the court and the increase in speculation about his retirement.
The ministers are identified as supporters of Pacheco. The senator would also have the support of and .
On Tuesday night (14), President Lula received Gilmar, Moraes, Dino and ministers Cristiano Zanin (STF) and Ricardo Lewandowski (Justice) at Palácio da Alvorada to discuss Barroso’s succession.
This pro-Pachaco articulation intensified in July, when the government decided to increase the (Tax on Financial Operations), after being overthrown by the .
Under Lula’s guidance, the (Attorney General’s Office) filed a request for a declaration of constitutionality of the presidential decree that increased IOF rates.
As chief minister of the AGU, Messias would be the accredited interlocutor for negotiations with the court. Ministers, however, supported a movement for Pacheco to be appointed to this role.
The senator had already been working with members of the court to the point of being honored at the Lisbon Legal Forum, organized by Gilmar Mendes’ institute. Pacheco was one of the speakers at the event, in a panel that also included the participation of Alexandre de Moraes.
The forum in Portugal took place in the midst of the crisis between the government and Congress surrounding the overturning of the IOF decree.
It was in Lisbon that Supreme Court ministers and congressmen tried to nominate Pacheco for the role of interlocutor between Congress, government and Supreme Court for the IOF crisis. But Lula kept the task in charge of Messias, alongside Minister Fernando Haddad (Finance).
At the time, magistrates even complained, in private conversations, about the difficulty in communicating with the Palácio do Planalto, defending the appointment of other government ministers for dialogue.
The complaints were about the lack of prestige in the nomination process for vacancies in courts and the overload of the court’s agenda with impasses in the political sphere.
A minister told the Sheet in July that there was a lack of high-level dialogue between Planalto and the court. The messages of dissatisfaction with the government ended up falling on Messias.
This articulation contradicted government officials. The assessment in the government is that Messias is efficient and discreet in carrying out his duties. And he managed to untie the knots with the Supreme Court with his firm action in favor of the court and Moraes after the financial sanctions imposed by the Donald Trump administration.
Even the resistance of these ministers to his name cooled after his strong action in defense of the STF.
The minister made the AGU available to Moraes to question the application of the Magnitsky Law and advised the hiring of an office in the United States to monitor the progress of sanctions against Brazil.
Today, these ministers even praise Messiah’s qualifications — however, they maintain their preference for the senator.
Pacheco became one of the main interlocutors with the Judiciary during his presidency of the Senate. The court was under attack from Bolsonarism.
Alexandre de Moraes tells interlocutors that he usually meets with the Minas Gerais senator weekly, at private dinners. Davi Alcolumbre usually participates at the table with the two allies.
From Pacheco’s conversations with ministers Alexandre de Moraes and Gilmar Mendes came the proposal to reduce the sentences of those convicted of the January 8 attacks. It was a strategy to reduce Bolsonaro pressure for a broad amnesty.
Gilmar even announced in August that his candidate for the Supreme Court seat was Pacheco. “The Court needs courageous and legally prepared people and Senator Pacheco is our candidate. The STF is a game for adults,” he told .
With the end of his presidency of the Senate, Pacheco began to focus his work on matters related to the Judiciary. He was the creator of the creation of a working group of jurists to suggest updating the Civil Code, and today he chairs a specific commission on the topic.
In defense of Pacheco, supporters remember his actions for respecting the results of the 2022 presidential elections, when the then president, Jair Bolsonaro, refused to admit Lula’s victory.
Allies of the PT member are betting, however, on Messias’ favoritism. According to reports, Lula praises the AGU holder’s combativeness and loyalty, saying that Messias is ripe for the role.
In the assessment of these interlocutors of the president, the minister of the TCU (Court of Auditors of the Union) Bruno Dantas would have even more chances than Pacheco to the STF, if there was a veto on Messias.
The hypothesis of vetoes is, however, rejected by the judges.
There are also movements by Lula’s allies to nominate Petrobras’ attorney general, Wellington César Lima e Silva, for the Supreme Court seat. The president is also under pressure to nominate a woman — a desire already announced by Barroso himself.
