He entered the dispute —already congested by PL and PP— for the position of vice-president on the (Republican) re-election campaign ticket.
Party leaders assessed that the most recent electoral articulations of (PSD) weakened its party and opened space for another party to claim the position, currently occupied by Felício Ramuth (PSD).
The topic was discussed at a meeting at the capital’s city hall this Monday (9), between the main names of the party in the state: the national president, Baleia Rossi, the state president, Rodrigo Arenas, the municipal president, Enrico Masasi, and the mayor of the capital, .
In the afternoon, Rossi met with Tarcísio to discuss the electoral scenario, and there was an expectation, among members of the party, that he would make himself available to the governor as an option.
At the end of January, Kassab stated that it was essential for Tarcísio to have his own identity in relation to Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and that one thing is gratitude, another, submission. The following day, Tarcísio said he had a relationship of gratitude and friendship with the former president, “absolutely nothing to do with submission” and that Kassab has “his own opinions”.
The movement of the São Paulo MDB to get closer to the governor follows the same dynamics of parties in the center, which negotiate alliances both with the Bolsonarista in São Paulo and with Lula’s (PT) campaign for the Presidency.
The , and the Republicans themselves, Tarcísio’s party, move in this way. Furthermore, there is an expectation, in the PL, that Kassab will not declare support for Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) in a possible second round against Lula.
In the case of the MDB, one of the objectives of approaching Tarcísio is to hinder the conversations that the party has been holding, at a national level, with members of Lula’s team. According to Sheet reported over the weekend, to invite the party again to be vice president — even though the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, in 2016, had direct participation from Michel Temer (MDB). Lula was receptive to the idea.
The São Paulo wing of the party, however, is refractory to the proposal. “I don’t see the majority of the party agreeing with this. Quite the opposite”, . The mayor bet on polarization in his footsteps and was elected with the support of Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
Although Baleia Rossi is considered the MDB’s main name for a possible position as Tarcísio’s deputy, an assistant assessed that the measure could put him at risk of losing the party’s presidency, contradicting part of the group in Congress, which prefers to remain close to Lula.
In this scenario, party members began to evaluate the possibility of inviting the vice-governor, Felício Ramuth, to join the MDB. Former mayor of São José dos Campos, Felício is a former tucano who joined the PSD at the invitation of Kassab to contest the last elections.
This alternative gains strength, according to a party member, given the assessment that Tarcísio likes his vice president and would prefer a solution that would allow him to keep him in his post.
Last Friday, during a press conference at Palácio dos Bandeirantes, the governor stated that the choice of vice-president will go through a process that will include all allies. “We will make this decision up front, we will make this decision together.”
The PL presented as an option the president of Alesp (Legislative Assembly), André do Prado, and argues that he has the largest bench in the Legislature and the longest TV time. Tarcísio has already said, in conversations with journalists, that the party must also consider the support it will give to Flávio’s campaign.
The PP must be represented on the ticket by the former secretary of Public Security, which, in the opinion of members of the alliance, would reduce the chances of the party getting two positions in the candidacy.
Simone Tebet
The movement around the ticket also occurs amid the process of leaving the Minister of Planning, Simone Tebet, from the MDB, now considered practically certain by allies. The assessment is that she should move to São Paulo to contest the state elections, regardless of the outcome of the negotiations over the vice position.
Tebet is considered as an option for the Senate, but, given the resistance of the Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad (PT), and vice-president Geraldo Alckmin (PSB), in facing Tarcísio, she has also been evaluated as a possible candidate for the government.
