The president of , , said this Friday (30) that the governor of , (), would be the ideal candidate for the Planalto Palace in 2026, denied having spoken of the politician’s submission in relation to the Bolsonaro clan and said that it is necessary to move forward with the three PSD pre-candidates.
“Tarcísio’s candidacy would be ideal, but we need to look ahead. We have three great names to run for President”, said Kassab to Sheet at an event at Arena B3, in the center of São Paulo.
He cited former president Fernando Henrique Cardoso more than once as a reference and did not reject the comparison that the PSD would be a new PSDB in politics, citing similarity in the positioning of the parties as centrist options in historical moments.
“The PSDB played an important role. It had a great president, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, great cadres. Let’s remember here in São Paulo, for example, the Mário Covas government, the José Serra government, two exponents of the PSDB”, he said.
“The PSD also appears at a time when political leaders from different states, who think the same way, have the same project for the country, understand that they already have a party representing this center. There is a bit of a similarity to how it is being born [agora o PSD]. At that moment, the PSDB came to oppose the Malufista right and the PT left. The PSD is really emerging as a center party, it has this similarity, opposing itself to the Bolsonarist right and the PT left”.
This week, the governor of Goiás, left and joined the PSD, which now brings together three pre-candidates for the Presidency — alongside governors Ratinho Júnior, from Paraná, and, from Rio Grande do Sul.
At the event at Arena B3, Kassab said that Tarcísio has given consistent signals that he will remain faithful to the Bolsonaro clan and stated that he respects the opinion of the politician, whose secretary of government and institutional relations he is.
He denied having insinuated that there was submission in the relationship between the governor of São Paulo and the Bolsonaro family in an interview given on Thursday (29) with Canal UOL. In it, Kassab stated that it was “fundamental that he [Tarcísio] have your identity. One thing is gratitude, recognition, loyalty, another thing is submission.”
In the B3 arena, Kassab stated that with the phrase he meant that Tarcísio is not submissive, but that he has character and makes the correct gestures towards Bolsonaro. He also said that it would be a privilege to be vice-president on the governor’s re-election ticket and that he thinks he will leave the government, but that this will be discussed “at the right time”.
“It was the opposite. The person asked me if he was submissive, I said I wasn’t submissive. He [Tarcísio] He is a person who has character, who knows that recognition is important, whether in personal life or in political life, and that his gestures are correct, they are appropriate for someone who was a minister and was launched and supported in this gubernatorial campaign. Therefore, this alliance, this partnership, this recognition is more than correct”, said Kassab in a speech given to UOL the day before.
At Arena B3, he also said that it was necessary to respect the position of the governor of Minas Gerais, (Novo), of trying his own candidacy for Planalto and denied having already made a move, at the end of last year and before presenting his three current pre-candidates for the Presidency, for Zema to be vice-president of Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ), a move reported at the time.
This week, Kassab was one of the main characters in national politics when he announced that his party would gather three pre-candidates to compete for a place in the 2026 presidential race, to compete against the president (PT) and the senator, who received the endorsement of his father, the former president (PL), to seek the position and inherit his political capital.
Zema has signaled that he remains in the race to guarantee visibility for his own party. The possibility of accepting to be vice-president, however, remains open, according to people close to the politician.
Tarcísio confirmed this Thursday (29) that he will be part of Bolsonaro’s team in the race. He also said that he will run for re-election in the state.
Kassab’s speech this Friday took place at an event by Amcham Brasil, the American Chamber of Commerce for Brazil, which brought together businesspeople and analysts at B3, in São Paulo, regarding the “private sector’s vision of the main challenges and priorities for 2026”.
