The senator abandoned the candidacy of deputy Hélio Lopes (RJ) and made the PL nominate, this Wednesday (08), deputy Soraya Santos (RJ) for the position.
Known as , Lopes is a staunch ally of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL). He was elected in 2022 with the name “Hélio Bolsonaro” on the ballot box and this year he will run for deputy for Roraima, at the request of the former president. The parliamentarian from Rio de Janeiro was handpicked by Bolsonaro to run for TCU. Behind the scenes, he was unhappy about being passed over.
Flávio argued that the PL’s change of candidacy to the court of accounts occurs because there is no female representation in the court. “My support is for Soraya Santos, because she is a woman, qualified, prepared and with good political articulation to get this seat in the Chamber. It bothers everyone that among the current members of the TCU there is not even a woman”, said the senator.
The articulation indicates that the pre-candidate for the Presidency intends to open a flank of attrition to the president, who favored the appointment of men to positions of Power.
Flávio said that Soraya can join the candidates competing against PT member Odair Cunha (MG). The deputy, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB), as part of the agreement involving several parties and which led the PT to support the man from Paraíba in the election for the command of the House.
Motta has told allies that, if the parties question the agreement signed around Odair, other understandings that divide power in the Chamber could also be broken. In this way, parties may lose reports and presidencies of important committees, such as the Budget.
Flávio said that the PL does not recognize the agreement by Odair. “I don’t make an agreement with the PT”, said the senator when asked about the matter. As part of the division of power in the Chamber with the election of Motta, the PL took the vice-presidency of the House, for example.
In addition to Odair and Soraya, the following registered candidacies: Elmar Nascimento (União Brasil-BA), Hugo Leal (PSD-RJ), Adriana Ventura (Novo-SP), Danilo Forte (PP-CE) and Gilson Daniel (Podemos-SP). Flávio hopes for a union of candidates to defeat Odair.
“The PT’s strategy is to launch as many candidacies against the PT as possible, so that there is division and makes life easier for the PT candidate. We will seek unity around Soraya, I believe there could be a convergence”, stated Flávio.
Elections to the TCU are held in a single round. In this way, a candidate can be elected without having a majority of votes.
When talking about Soraya’s choice, Flávio also indicated that he intends to use the dispute for TCU to wear down the Lula government. In polls, the PT member tends to do better among female voters, who are the majority in Brazil.
“We are going to look for all the candidates to reach a consensus. The PT’s strategy, in addition to lying, is to break the promise of placing women in positions of power, it was like that in the STF without any nomination of women, three women in the government were sent away and with men in their place”, stated Flávio.
The senator made reference. During this term, the PT member brought his former lawyer and his former Minister of Justice and Public Security to the Supreme Court. This year, the president appointed the attorney general of the Union, .
This Tuesday (07), Motta backed away from electing the next minister, postponing the vote scheduled for this Wednesday (8). Voting will take place on the 14th.
As shown by SheetMotta had already this week, after the end of the party window. This scenario would favor Odair, seen as the favorite.
The decision to schedule the election only for next week occurred after party leaders questioned the president of the Chamber for installing booths in the plenary for the election, which is by secret vote. Some of the candidates already threatened with the judicialization of the process.
In the meeting with the leaders, Motta denied that he had already set a date. His allies stated that the installation of the cabins was a normal process and that the exact day had not been scheduled. It was then decided that the election will take place on Tuesday next week.
It was also agreed that the candidates will undergo a hearing at the Chamber’s Finance and Taxation Committee, following the procedure provided for in a legislative decree from the 1990s. The date of these interviews will be defined by the president of the collegiate, Merlong Solano (PT-PI). They are most likely to occur on Thursday (9) or Monday (13). The deadline for registering applications is this Wednesday, at 4pm.
