In a meeting between the senator (-RJ) and the governor of Rio de Janeiro, (PL), the PL defined, this Tuesday (24), an alliance with the federation formed by and to form a platform in Rio de Janeiro, home state of the presidential pre-candidate.
According to the agreement, the candidate for Rio’s government will be the state secretary of Cities, Douglas Ruas (PL), son of captain Nelson Ruas, mayor of São Gonçalo, the third largest electoral college in the state.
When announcing the alliance with PP and União Brasil in Rio, Flávio stated that he intends to signal to the country that he will prioritize political constructions with allies. The senator said that the PL is currently working with 11 pre-candidates for state governments, with Rio being one of them.
“I want to signal, also to the rest of the country, that I always intend to bring people who have the alignment, the political body with us, who also bring this experience and meet the party composition, because I really believe in politics as a way for us to compose and solve the country’s problems”, he told journalists.
The vice position must be occupied by the PP, and the name indicated is that of former state deputy and former mayor of Nova Iguaçu Rogério Lisboa.
The seats in the Senate will be divided between the PL and União Brasil, with Castro being the name of Flávio’s party. União Brasil should nominate Márcio Canella, mayor of Belford Roxo. Canella invited Flávio’s mother, former councilor Rogéria Bolsonaro, to be his substitute.
The seam announced this Tuesday ends up sacrificing the candidacy for re-election of the leader of the PL in the Senate, Carlos Portinho, who was left without the possibility of being a candidate for the PL. Flávio stated that he spoke with Portinho and that the senator made a “great gesture of humility and understanding” by giving up his personal project to prioritize the party alliance in Rio.
Flávio invited Portinho to be one of the national coordinators of his campaign, alongside senator Rogério Marinho (PL-RN).
In a note, Portinho stated that the PL defined other names for the Senate, much to his misfortune.
“I receive the decision with serenity and political maturity. […] I do not betray my consistency or my honesty. My gratitude will be greater than the eventual frustration with the decision of our pre-candidate, Flávio Bolsonaro. It worries me, but I respect it. And I know that I can contribute to the victory we so desperately need, wherever I am,” he said.
Rio de Janeiro must undergo an indirect election for the state government starting in April, when Claudio Castro will leave office to run for the Senate. The preference in the PL is for Ruas to contest both the indirect election for the buffer mandate and the October election.
The party, however, is awaiting the definition of the indirect election rules to decide who will be its representative — there is doubt as to whether the same name could compete in both state elections this year.
“It’s a great honor to be here at this moment making an announcement, perhaps the first complete ticket in Brazil, for my state, for Rio de Janeiro”, said Flávio.
In addition to parliamentarians from the Rio PL, names from the PP also participated in the meeting, such as the leader of the party in the Chamber of Deputies, Dr. Luizinho (RJ), and the president of União Brasil, Antonio Rueda, in addition to the president of the PL, Valdemar Costa Neto. Rueda should be a candidate for federal deputy.
From the point of view of , however, Castro’s situation is undefined due to the process in which the Public Electoral Ministry requests his revocation and ineligibility due to the case of the “secret sheets” for payment of state foundations. The case is in the (Superior Electoral Court) with a vote to condemn the governor given by Minister Isabel Gallotti.
When asked about his ally’s situation, Flávio said he had no concerns and that Castro would defend himself in court.
The current governor was re-elected in 2022 and, therefore, will not be able to be a candidate for this position in October. At the time, Castro won in the first round with 58.67% of the valid votes. He surpassed then deputy Marcelo Freixo (PSB), who came in second place in the dispute with 27.38%.
The PL’s expectation is to beat the president (PT) in the state of Rio de Janeiro with a wide advantage.
Rio de Janeiro is one of the main electoral strongholds of Bolsonarism. Furthermore, it is the third largest electoral college in the country, behind only Minas Gerais. There are more than 13 million voters in Rio de Janeiro, according to TSE data from the last election, in 2024.
As shown by SheetFlávio will dedicate himself this week to setting up platforms to promote his name in several states. He should also meet with the governor of São Paulo, (Republicans), in the next few days.
So far, the senator has made trips to the Middle East, Europe and the United States, where he has met with far-right leaders. He returned to Brazil this Monday (23), amid a new situation.
