The national president of the PP, senator (PI), stated this Saturday (25) that the president (PT) is, at the moment, the favorite for the 2026 presidential election. The statement was made to journalists during an event on public security held in São Paulo. According to Nogueira, Lula “is a plane that is flying alone” in the current electoral scenario, but “flying low”, in reference to the absence of a consolidated opposition name in the dispute. “If only one team is on the field, it is the favorite. But, when our center takes off, it will fly much higher and will be much better for the country”, he stated.
The senator avoided commenting on who should lead the right-wing ticket next year. Governors even discussed a unified candidacy, but the movement lost strength due to internal differences and the resistance of the former president (PL), now under house arrest, in assuming a role of public support for a specific name.
During the conversation with reporters, the governor of Rio de Janeiro, Cláudio Castro (PL), who was next to Nogueira, joked that the senator “already has the support of three governors”, also referring to Antônio Denarium (PP), from Roraima, and Eduardo Riedel (PP), from Mato Grosso do Sul. The vice-governor of Acre, Mailza Assis (PP), also participated in the meeting.
Nogueira once again cited the possibility of the right uniting around names such as the governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), and the governor of Paraná, Ratinho Júnior (PSD), currently considered the main potential candidates of the conservative field. Tarcísio was expected at the event, but canceled his participation.
The senator also criticized Lula for a recent statement about drug trafficking, later revised by the president. “I only have to regret a President of the Republic with this type of thinking. Society does not accept this type of position”, he stated. He once again commented on the political crisis in Venezuela, saying he hoped there would be no external intervention in the country led by Nicolás Maduro. Still, he said that, in his view, “the time has come for the people of Venezuela to remove this dictator from power” and that he hopes that “the Army itself will do this.”
