By rejecting the name of , nominated by the president (PT) for the vacancy left by the (Supreme Federal Court), the Federal Government cast doubt on when and who will occupy the post.
Civil society movements and entities took advantage of the vacancy and appealed to the court during this term.
The opposition to the government, in turn, defends that the president of the House, senator (-AM), does not put a possible new name presented by Lula to a vote. The nomination of the next member of the STF should go to the winner of the 2026 electoral dispute, they argue.
Lula is now rehearsing a possible return of the Messiah’s name, which would frustrate the entities’ plans. Even forwarding the AGU’s suggestion for the second time this year, the Senate’s internal rules prohibit the same nomination from being evaluated twice in the same legislative year.
The appointment of a black jurist would be unprecedented in the court’s history and would mean a change in the criteria adopted by Lula in the three appointments he made in this third term. The names of , and —which was not accepted by the Senate— highlight choices based on political affinity or personal trust.
As announced on Monday (18), the choice of is very important for 51% of Brazilians and somewhat important for 18%. Another 27% say this criterion is not important at all.
The nomination of a black person is, for 46%, very important and, for 16%, somewhat important. This condition is not important for 34%.
an organization that works to expand access for black people to educational institutions, created a list of 15 names sent to Lula. In the letter, the entity also suggests that the president schedule a dinner or lunch with the entity’s nominees.
For the founder of Educafro, it is understandable that a President of the Republic chooses people close to him for positions such as STF minister. “But that’s the problem. How am I going to get to know someone deeply if I don’t invite anyone from this group to dinner at my house, to participate in my moments of reflection?”, he asks.
Asked about the possible new appointment of Messias, the religious man says he understands the internal political conflicts that lead Lula to insist on the appointment. He states, however, that the president would be disrespecting the Inter-American Convention against Racism, of which Brazil is a signatory and which obliges its members to prevent, eliminate and punish racial discrimination.
David also states that the symbolism of the 2023 presidential inauguration scene, in which Lula climbed the Planalto Palace ramp with eight people, should be respected. “You don’t use a symbol to deceive a people. When I use this symbol and don’t take it seriously in exchange for governability, I have a price to pay”, he concludes.
The movements also include an unsuccessful attempt at a meeting with Guilherme Boulos (PSOL). As reported by columnist Mônica Bergamo, the Instituto Juristas Negras and Mulheres Negras Decidem would hold an event on the 12th, which did not happen.
The meeting that actually took place was with Eduardo Brasileiro, director of Partnerships with Civil Society at the department. The subject discussed was the Regulatory Framework for Civil Society Organizations.
The entities sent nine nominations to the government. These names coincide with part of the 15 suggestions raised by Educafro and sent to Planalto.
For Monique Damas, director of the Instituto Juristas Negras, the return of Messiah’s name would be an episode of neglect of the pleas of black women. She criticized what she called the president’s disregard for the issue.
“Silence is also a response”, he said, citing a letter sent by the entity at the beginning of the government and which he says has not been responded to today.
See the trajectory of some of the names suggested by these entities. THE Sheet He tried to contact the 15 nominees, but the majority chose not to speak. The reasons range from formal ties with justice institutions to fear that public demonstrations at this time would hinder an eventual campaign.
Adriana Cruz
Federal judge, former secretary-general of the (National Council of Justice) and PhD in criminal law from Uerj (in the State of Rio de Janeiro).
The magistrate has already worked directly as an instructing judge in the office of former minister Luís Roberto Barroso in 2015. The role consists of assisting the minister in criminal proceedings under his jurisdiction, conducting hearings with witnesses and carrying out interrogations.
Em In October 2025, Adriana Cruz stated that the inclusion of black people in the Judiciary is a “necessary step in a society that even when the issue is “. At the time, as now, she did not want to comment on the campaign of entities on her behalf nor did she confirm whether she would like to be nominated to the STF.
Bruna dos Santos Costa Rodrigues
Judge of the (Court of Justice of Ceará) and head of the 1st Court of Pacatuba. She has already headed the Regional Electoral Ombudsman’s Office and was an assistant judge at the Internal Affairs Department and Presidency of the TRE-CE (Regional Electoral Court of Ceará). She studied for a master’s degree and, currently, a doctorate at Uece (State University of Ceará). He also has certification in human and international rights from the University of Coimbra.
In 2025, she received the Diploma, a tribute from the Senate to personalities who stand out in defending women’s rights.
The judge spoke to the Sheet and stated that he sees the expectation of appointing a black woman to the STF as “natural, given 135 years of nominations that did not reflect the diversity of the Brazilian people”.
For her, “it is not a confrontation with the president, but a social appeal that there are black women with the competence and preparation to perform this role.” The judge declined to comment on whether she would like to be nominated to the Supreme Court.
Edilene Lôbo
First black minister in the history of the (Superior Electoral Court), she served on the court between 2023 and 2025 as appointed by President Lula (PT). In an interview with Sheet at the time of her inauguration, when asked whether the appointment of a white man to the vacancy left by Rosa Weber would be a step backwards, she replied: “I don’t see it as a step backwards, I think it could be a lost chance to take a bigger step.” The nominee was the then Minister of Justice Flávio Dino.
With a PhD in law from PUC-MG, she is a professor at the University of Itaúna, in the metropolitan region of Belo Horizonte, and has previously taught at the Sorbonne-Nouvelle University – Paris 3, in France. In 2018, she was a lawyer for former president Dilma Rousseff’s campaign for the Senate in Minas Gerais.
His name had already been mentioned by entities since before Jorge Messias was appointed. Even so, the minister in an article published in Sheet in April 2026.
Flávia Martins de Carvalho
Judge of the TJ-SP (São Paulo Court of Justice) since 2018, she worked in the office of former minister Luís Roberto Barroso at the Supreme Court. When the minister assumed the presidency of the court, in 2023, he appointed the judge as the court’s first hearing judge. He is currently part of the team of assistant judges in the minister’s office.
He participated in the custody hearing of Jair Bolsonaro’s advisor Felipe Martins, convicted of involvement in the coup plot. He also conducted a hearing with Moraes’ former advisor, Eduardo Tagliaferro, accused of violating functional secrecy.
She has a bachelor’s and master’s degree in law from UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro) and a doctorate in philosophy and theory of law from . She was director of promoting racial equality at AMB (Association of Brazilian Magistrates).
Karen Louise Souza
Judge of the TJ-RS (Court of Justice of Rio Grande do Sul) and counselor at the CNMP (National Council of the Public Ministry), having been approved for the role by the Senate. The voting score, which took place in August 2019, was 58 votes in favor and three against. In 2022, she was appointed assistant judge of the CNJ.
In the same year, he granted and spoke about representation in justice institutions. “A black woman in power is always a hope for gender and racial equality. A black woman on the STF, with critical and argumentative representation, will be a driving force,” said Karen.
Lívia Miranda Müller Casseres
The public defender of the state of Rio de Janeiro also appears on the list of suggested names. She is the general coordinator of special projects on drugs and racial justice at the National Secretariat for Drug Policies and Asset Management of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security.
Graduated in law from Uerj, she is a doctoral student at PUC-Rio. In 2016, she was awarded the Padre Ernesto Medal of Merit, awarded by the Rio City Council. She was also the winner, in 2023, of the 3rd Emerj Prize, organized by the Escola da Magistratura do Estado do Rio de Janeiro.
Lívia Sant’Anna and Vaz
Prosecutor of the MP-BA (Bahia) since 2004, coordinates the Special Action Group for the Protection of Human Rights and Combating Discrimination. She has a doctorate in law from the University of Lisbon.
In 2020, she was chosen as one of the 100 most influential people of African descent in the world in the area of law and justice by the international organization Mipad (Most Influential People of African Descent). She was awarded the Maria Quitéria Commendation by the Salvador City Council in 2017.
She is the author of the volume “Racial Quotas”, which makes up the collection “Feminismos Plurais”, organized by Djamila Ribeiro.
Manuellita Hermes
Federal Attorney of the (Attorney General of the Union) since 2007, argues that “multiple perspectives enrich the debate on different topics, and it is essential to have diversity and representation within the STF court”.
She served as an advisor to the then minister Rosa Weber and, when the judge retired, in October 2023, Manuellita emerged for the first time as a possible candidate for a vacancy on the court. Minister Flávio Dino was chosen for the occasion.
She was secretary of Higher Studies at the STF and is a professor at IDP (Brazilian Institute of Teaching, Development and Research) and at the AGU School.
“I am totally grateful to social movements on various topics and, above all, to the black agenda. I am here today thanks to the black movement”, she says.
Soraia Mendes
Launched in 2021 by social movements to respond to the appointment of minister André Mendonça to the STF by former president Jair Bolsonaro (), its name has been raised again.
Lawyer and professor, Soraia is a postdoctoral fellow at UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro). He is a specialist in human rights and acted as an expert before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in the case Márcia Barbosa vs. Brazil.
The Brazilian state was condemned by the international court in 2021 for failing to properly investigate and punish those responsible for Márcia’s femicide. The student was killed by asphyxiation in 1998 by the then federal deputy for the PFL Aércio Pereira da Lima. He was convicted in 2007, but died before he began serving his sentence.
Soraia was also national coordinator of Cladem (Committee for Latin America and the Caribbean for the Defense of Women’s Rights), responsible for taking the Maria da Penha case to the IACHR (Inter-American Commission on Human Rights).
Vera Lúcia Araújo
She was minister of the TSE until February 2026, chosen by Lula from a triple list sent by the STF. Lawyer, she was also deputy director of the Electoral Judiciary School.
He was already part of the Political Amnesty Commission and the CDESS (Council for Sustainable Social Economic Development), the Council. It is part of the National Human Rights Commission of the OAB (Brazilian Bar Association) and the Brazilian Justice and Peace Commission.
From Bahia, he arrived in Brasília in 1978, where he studied law at Ceub (Brasília University Center). During college, he was active in the student movement and was part of the institution’s academic directorate.
Other names
In total, Educafro, the Instituto Juristas Negras and Mulheres Negras Decidem brought together 15 names. See the other women identified as possible candidates for the STF:
- Franciele Pereira do Nascimentoassistant judge in the office of the President of the Supreme Federal Court;
- Jaceguara Dantas da Silvajudge at the Court of Justice of Mato Grosso do Sul;
- Rosimayre Gonçalves de Carvalhofederal judge at the Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region;
- Silvia Souzalawyer and president of the National Human Rights Commission of the Federal Council of the OAB;
- Sheila de Carvalhonational secretary of Access to Justice of the federal government.
