The president () and those around him have used two of the main issues in politics today to try to get closer to evangelical and conservative groups about six months before the election. In at least one of these cases, the discourse targeting conservatives was partially constructed in internal government discussions.
The themes are online betting platforms, , and the end of the rest period. The issues, which have frequently appeared in the speeches of government officials, served as a hook for messages targeting conservatives and evangelicals in recent days.
On Tuesday (14), Lula criticized betting in an interview with the websites Brasil 247, DCM and Revista Fórum, – the president of the Republic is Catholic. The head of government and his political group place part of the blame for the increase in the population’s debt on online betting.
The president said that the population has had expenses that, in the past, did not exist. “And now they have the bets to rob the people”, declared the PT member. “We’ve fought our whole lives against casinos, I at least, as a Christian, now the casino is inside your house”, stated the president.
A week earlier, the Chief Executive had said that, if it were up to him, . “If they’re doing it so badly, why don’t we put an end to it? We’re trying to discuss this,” he said.
In the same interview on Tuesday, Lula stated that he had a “moral, ethical and even Christian commitment to not allow fascists to govern again.” The PT member spoke about the subject to try to end the .
On Wednesday (15), the person who gave a nod to conservatives was the minister of the General Secretariat, (PSOL). He touched on the subject while announcing the sending of a bill to Congress to end the 6×1 work schedule.
Boulos associated the project with the defense of the family, an issue dear to conservatives. The possibility of making this association was noticed by members of the government in internal discussions on the topic.
“The bill that urgently needs to be put to an end is the working family project. Because whoever defends the family in Brazil defends that workers can spend more time with their family”, declared Boulos.
The minister also mentioned that, if the project is approved, people will have more time to go to church. This argument would have come from Boulos, not from internal management conversations.
He stated that the project would be especially important for women who are overwhelmed with work and the responsibilities that fall on them at home. “She has no rest, no leisure time, no time to go to church, no time to watch a football game,” declared the minister.
Lula has, in previous periods, avoided mixing religion and politics. In 2022, during the election campaign, he only agreed to release one after insistence from allies.
The PT member said he believed that proposals aimed at the economy, such as salary increases and increased social programs, could attract sectors of the religious segment that, over time, adhered to Bolsonarism.
Research released to the public and studies carried out by the PT’s political group show that the strategy was not enough to attract this electorate. released last week showed that Lula’s main opponent, (-RJ), has double the president’s voting intention among evangelicals.
The picture considering the entire electorate is . The PT member appears with 45% and the Bolsonarist, with 46%. The tie is due to the margin of error of 2 percentage points, plus or minus. The two pre-candidates are also the possessors.
