The leader of the government in the Chamber, deputy (-CE), reinforced the message of the president (PT) and stated that the parties that make up the government must help with votes in the Executive’s interest.
“I think he [Lula] He made a very appropriate speech for the moment we are living in. It must be understood that it is not possible for a party to participate in the government and vote against the government here. No one wants to force anything, but people also need to step up,” Guimarães told journalists this Thursday (18).
During the meeting with ministers this Wednesday (17), Lula demanded loyalty and .
“Next year is the year in which we have the opportunity, not only because we will be in dispute, but because each minister, each party that you participate in will have to be in the electoral process and will have to define which side they are on. It will be inexorable for people to define the speech they are going to make. They will have to defend what they think can elect them”, he said.
Among the parties that make up the government, but do not provide full support to the Executive in the votes, are , , , and . Guimarães said he defended a broad front for Lula’s re-election and highlighted that there would be one.
Guimarães also mentioned the improvement in the government’s relationship with União Brasil — Celso Sabino leaves, who was expelled from the party in December, and Gustavo Feliciano enters, with the support of almost half of the party’s bench in the Chamber and the endorsement of the party’s president, Antonio Rueda.
Although the opposition wing of União Brasil denies that the nomination of Gustavo Feliciano, son of federal deputy Damião Feliciano (União Brasil-PB) came from the party, the understanding in the government is that the name pleases Rueda and the president of the Chamber, (Republicanos-PB).
This week, Rueda had a conversation with the minister (Institutional Relations) and the president of the PT, Edinho Silva, in yet another gesture of recomposition. In September, the party arrived and pressured Sabino to leave his position, and for this he was expelled.
“I think it has also advanced with the changes that have occurred. […] My expectation, based on what happened with the change of União Brasil, [é de que] We have to create a base here that has at least the 257 votes that are necessary to approve the most relevant matters”, said Guimarães.
The government leader also stated that, as an essential matter for the government to close its accounts in 2026, there were 310 votes in favor, with part of União Brasil and PSD voting in favor.
For Guimarães, as these parties did not support Lula in the 2022 election, having half of the bench is already a gain.
“We had 310 votes. The PSD gave 35 votes [de 47]União Brasil gave 30 something [de 59]and so on. I think that if we have this average, of 30 to 35 votes from the União Brasil, PSD and PP benches, it is a good size. Why? These parties, a significant part of them, made an alliance with the candidate who lost the election. Therefore, this has to be understood,” he said.
The appointment of the new Minister of Tourism came from the most pro-government group on the União Brasil bench, which brings together around 20 to 22 out of 59 deputies, and is made up of former minister Juscelino Filho (MA), the leader of the bench, Pedro Lucas Fernandes (MA), and Damião himself.
In a press interview, Sabino stated that the government’s move. “I think this nomination shows that he has already returned,” he said.
The party intended to support the presidential candidacy of the governor (Republicans) together with the PP, with the senator (PL-RJ) throwing himself into Planalto. Now, , and some of its leaders have started to defend neutrality.
