The government (PT) will face a bumpy calendar in Congress this year to approve what it considers a priority. PT political organizers are betting that these proposals have the potential to improve the popularity of the president, who will run for re-election in October.
The list is made up of the PEC (proposed amendment to the Constitution) that increases the powers of the , the bill with measures to combat organized crime, the reduction of weekly working hours () and the MP (provisional measure) that offers cooking gas to low-income families.
In election years, however, the Legislature usually only functions fully in the first half of the year. After the mid-year recess, which begins in mid-July and ends in August, deputies and senators are focused on their own campaigns and their political groups in the states, making it difficult to mobilize congressmen to vote on projects in Brasília.
The first semester will have holidays on days when the Legislature usually meets, and may even change the dynamics of Congress. Deputies and senators are currently on recess, and will only return to work in the first week of February.
The (16, 17 and 18 of February) and the day of (21 of April) will consume Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Congressmen claim that the Legislative’s productivity should also be low during Holy Week (first week of April).
The FIFA World Cup begins on June 11th. One of the Brazilian team’s games in the first phase will be on a Wednesday, at 7 pm, the time when the Chamber plenary usually holds votes. The match is against Scotland, on June 24th.
The proposal considered best forwarded by the government is the MP for the Gás do Povo program, which allows low-income families to receive gas cylinders free of charge. The annual cost of the program in 2026 is expected to be around R$5.1 billion, according to the explanatory memorandum attached to the text.
The proposal was approved in early December by a committee of deputies and senators. Now, it needs the approval of the Chamber and the Senate until February 11, when its deadline expires — provisional measures have the force of law from their publication for up to 120 days, having to be validated by Congress.
The proposal to combat organized crime, which became known as the anti-faction PL (bill of law), but needs further deliberation by deputies.
In this case there is a dispute to be made. The government’s initial proposal was changed by the rapporteur in the Chamber, the Bolsonarista (PP-SP). The Senate made new changes and brought the project closer to that idealized by the Executive, but these changes could be discarded in the new deliberation by the deputies.
The Public Security PEC, which increases the Union’s responsibilities in the area, is still in its initial stages of processing in the Chamber. The rapporteur, deputy Mendonça Filho (União Brasil-PE), told Sheet it will be possible to vote on the project until March.
He states that most of the text has been agreed with the deputies. “There is a point here and there with an ideological opposition from the PT, such as against the referendum on the age of criminal responsibility in 2028”, he declared.
The government leader in the Chamber, (PT-CE), said on social media that the Executive still wants to make changes to the project. “The Security PEC continues to be one of our government’s priorities for 2026.”
Lula and his allies assess that public security tends to be one of the main themes of the election. As Datafolha showed, the subject .
The President of the Republic needs to have a structured speech about the area to compete for the electorate. Right-wing politicians who preach a hard line on public security tend to have visibility. The senator (PL-RJ), Lula’s likely opponent in this year’s election, is part of this group.
The proposal highlighted by government supporters as the most powerful in terms of its ability to attract votes is the reduction of weekly working hours, with the end of the 6×1 scale. There are two PECs on the subject in Congress, but the Executive decided to support a bill on the subject, as it is easier to approve.
The proposal embraced by the government is led by deputy Léo Prates (PDT-BA), who took over as rapporteur. The text prepared by Prates determines that the weekly working day be reduced from up to 44 hours to up to 40 hours, with two consecutive days of paid rest.
The project prohibits salary reductions associated with reduced working hours. Furthermore, it stipulates a two-year transition to reduce hours worked. If the text came into force today, there would be 42 hours of work per week in 2027 and 40 hours from 2028 onwards.
Lula’s allies compare the popularity of this proposal to that of increasing the income tax exemption range, which came into effect at the beginning of this year. They try to convince the president of the Chamber, (-PB), to promote the project under the argument that it would also be a good brand for his management.
