The minister, of the (Supreme Federal Court), assumes the presidency of the (Superior Electoral Court) this Tuesday (12) under a climate of distrust on the part of allies of the former president (), due to recent gestures of rapprochement between the magistrate and the government ().
PL leaders celebrate the arrival of Bolsonaro’s nominee and extol his technical profile, but do not ignore the magistrate’s recent moves in a nod to the government, such as that of the Union’s attorney general, for the vacancy that is open in the Supreme Court. The name is over.
Opposition parliamentarians heard privately by the Sheet claim that Kassio even has an ideological alignment to the right, but assess that the magistrate’s management at the TSE will not necessarily be favorable to his political group. The minister’s appeasing profile is seen as an obstacle to this scenario.
Kassio also showed signs that he will act in , a sensitive topic for Bolsonarism. The former president, arrested due to the , was also for attacking the credibility of the equipment.
Despite having voted for acquittal on that occasion, Kassio has said that, as president of the TSE, combating fake news about the electronic voting system is a priority institutional agenda, especially in times of .
On the other hand, the reading of PL politicians is that the climate on the right will be significantly better compared to previous administrations, such as that of the minister, who handed over the position this Tuesday, and that of the minister, who led those in 2022.
High-ranking PT members recognize that Kassio has a greater affinity with Bolsonarist politicians, but believe there is room for neutral behavior on the part of the minister. Lula’s allies see the new president of the TSE as an articulate judge, with a good relationship with figures from different political spectrums.
PT and centrão leaders remember that Kassio reached the position of judge at the TRF-1 (Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region) by appointment of the then president (PT), in 2011. Born in Piauí, the minister was close to the then governor Wellington Dias, now minister of Social Development and Fight Against Hunger.
Aware of the role that the magistrate would play during the electoral period, the government had moments of rapprochement with the STF minister. Still in 2024, Caixa hired economist Maria Socorro Mendonça Carvalho Marques as an advisor.
Last year, Lula nominated TRF-1 judge Carlos Pires Brandão for a vacancy in the (Superior Court of Justice), to which ministers Gilmar Mendes and Flávio Dino were opposed. As shown by the Sheetthe president, upon choosing Brandão, called the minister in a gesture of deference.
Lula confirmed in his agenda this Tuesday that he would go to Kassio’s inauguration ceremony. According to allies, he is going to the event to honor the new president of the TSE and convey to the magistrate the message that the PT does not want any type of conflict.
Faced with a possible legal battle between the campaigns of Lula and the senator (PL-RJ), Kassio told interlocutors that he wants the TSE to interfere as little as possible in political disputes, so that voters and candidates are the true protagonists of the election, and not the Electoral Court.
The minister signaled, for example, that he will avoid using the institution’s police power to prevent irregularities in the elections, at the same time that he promises the political world open doors for dialogue, both with the left and the right, to ease polarization.
The police power was . This is an attribution of the president of the TSE to, even without an ongoing legal process, take a series of measures, such as the removal of irregular advertising, the removal of illicit content and the suspension of illegal advertising.
SEE NEW COMPOSITION OF TSE
- Kassio Nunes Marques (President)
Nominated to the STF by Jair Bolsonaro (PL)
- André Mendonça (Vice-President)
Nominated to the STF by Jair Bolsonaro (PL)
Nominated to the STF by Lula (PT)
- Antonio Carlos Ferreira (Corregedor-Geral)
Nominated to the STJ by Dilma Rousseff (PT)
- Ricardo Villas Bôas Cueva
Nominated to the STJ by Dilma Rousseff (PT)
- Floriano Peixoto de Azevedo Marques Neto
Jurist appointed by Lula (PT) from triple lists drawn up by the Supreme Court plenary
Jurist appointed by Lula (PT) based on triple lists drawn up by the plenary of the Supreme Court
