President assured support in RJ with Eduardo Paes’ pre-candidacy for state government; PT will need to launch names in São Paulo and Espírito Santo due to lack of space, while waiting for Rodrigo Pacheco in MG
The president (PT) has had difficulty setting up platforms in the Southeast for the 2026 elections. The region has the largest electoral college in the country, with 65,493,324 voters eligible to vote, according to the (Superior Electoral Court).
In the 2022 election, the Southeast was decisive for the PT member returned to Planalto: the acronym compared to 2018 in the 2nd round, when was the candidate. So far, Lula a space in Rio de Janeiro, with (PSD), which is a pre-candidate for state government.
The PT will need to launch its own candidacies due to the unviability of alliances in at least 2 states: Espírito Santo and São Paulo.
The biggest obstacle is Minas Gerais due to the senator’s resistance (PSD) in competing for Palácio Tiradentes. The congressman will have to change parties to consider Lula. MDB and União Brasil are two membership options.
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Pacheco awaits a national positioning from the parties regarding the position on the candidate for president. The chosen party must be at least neutral in the national election, freeing up decision-making on the local scene.
At the same time, there is an orientation from Lula and the national PT for party members in Minas to wait a few more days for a definition. There is an expectation that the PT members will have the mayor of Contagem as a candidate for the Senate.
On Tuesday (March 3, 2026), at least 16 state directories of the MDB to the national president of the party, deputy (SP), a manifesto in which they request the “independence” party in the presidential election. The act that symbolized the delivery of the document was in the party’s chamber in the Chamber.
The movement anticipates the possibility of the party occupying the vice position on a ticket headed by Lula in the electoral dispute in 2026. President of the MDB in Minas Gerais, the federal deputy is one of the signatories. Read the (PDF – 143 kB) of the document.
SÃO PAULO
The São Paulo PT and Lula want it to be. The two are in São Paulo this weekend and there is the possibility of a conversation to reach a definition. The Finance Minister will leave office, but it is still closed for that.
In 2022, Haddad ran for government in São Paulo and had the best performance in the history of the PT in the State, receiving more than 10.9 million votes in the 2nd round (44.73% of valid votes). He runs it for (Republicans).
There is also the chance that the ministers (Environment), from the Network, and the emedebista (Planning) will occupy two vacancies in the Senate on a ticket headed by Haddad. In the MDB for 29 years, Tebet will have to leave the party if she wants to be a candidate in the State of São Paulo and the PSB is the main option at the moment.
The mayor of São Paulo, (MDB), is an ally of Tarcísio, which makes the minister’s eventual candidacy in the state unfeasible. Tebet will leave the government by March 30 and .
HOLY SPIRIT
The federal deputy (PT-ES) is a pre-candidate for the state government and will have a conversation with Lula in March to discuss the matter. Both the congressman and the president of the PT in Espírito Santo, a state deputy, mention the meeting to consolidate the nomination.
“The priorities of the party in Espírito Santo are the re-election of President Lula, the senator, the election of Helder Salomão, as well as the composition of a slate of federal and state deputies to defend the legacy of President Lula and the PT”declared Coser to the Poder360.
Re-elected in 2022, the governor (PSB) is an ally of Lula and will resign from his position by April 4th. The expectation is that he will run for the Senate. This way, there is space to form the ticket led by Helder Salomão.
Casagrande will leave Palácio Anchieta under the command of the vice-governor, (MDB), who intends to run for the Espírito Santo government and has no interest in opening a platform for Lula. The emedebista is the president of the party in Espírito Santo and signed the manifesto that refutes support for the PT member in the national election. Hence the need for the PT to launch its own candidacy as there is no room for an alliance.
