Allies of the president (PT) claim that the definition of who should take command of the (Advocacy General of the Union) in place of , in the (Federal Supreme Court), is not on the president’s agenda. According to the PT’s assistants, the Chief Executive’s number 1 priority is to ensure the approval of the ally’s name in the interview.
Lula made official this Thursday (20) the appointment of Messias to the vacancy opened in the court with the departure of minister Luís Roberto Barroso. The president of the House, (União Brasil-AP), worked for the nomination of (PSD-MG), his predecessor in office and one of his closest allies.
Since Thursday, Alcolumbre has stated to interlocutors that he will work against the approval of the head of the AGU.
According to Lula’s allies, Messias’ potential replacements in the AGU have not yet been discussed by the president and are, at this moment, being defended by supporters of the candidates themselves. They emphasize that, until the hearing, Messias will continue to lead the body and, therefore, this topic will only be addressed later.
These assistants rely on a homemade solution, with recommendations from AGU staff. Among those listed are the deputy attorney general, Flavio Roman, the secretary general of Litigation, Isadora Cartaxo, the Treasury attorney, Anelize Almeida, the Federal attorney general, Adriana Venturini, and the attorney general of the Union, Clarice Calixto. Another name remembered is that of federal prosecutor Manuellita Hermes.
The choice of a woman would be a way to mitigate demands after the appointment of another white man to the Supreme Court, say PT’s interlocutors. Lula’s choice to be made official on the date on which Black Awareness Day is celebrated was criticized even by allies. They believe that the movement gave rise to more criticism among its base.
A frequent interlocutor of Lula’s does not rule out that he opts for what he classifies as continuity in the management of AGU and, in this scenario, mentions the name of Roman, who would be a safe option in this sense. He says that Lula should, if re-elected in 2026, appoint women to the STF and assesses that choosing a female attorney general would not alleviate this pressure on the PT member.
The president’s allies also claim that this debate should also be postponed for a second time so as not to create difficulties in the process of analyzing Messiah’s name in the Senate. Dealing with this now, they say, would be signaling to Congress that they are already considering the name of the attorney general to be approved by the House, disregarding dialogue with parliamentarians.
Furthermore, it could generate a duplicity of command in the body itself, since Messias will continue to lead the AGU while his nomination is processed in the Senate. Three allies who were recently with Lula say that he did not discuss possible replacements for the attorney general in conversations about the ally’s appointment to the STF.
The nomination for vacancies in the Supreme Court is the prerogative of the Presidency of the Republic, but the names must be endorsed by at least 41 of the 81 senators, in a secret vote.
