Opposition members in the Senate estimate that they will have at least 30 votes against J’s nominationbarley Messias for a vacancy at the STF (Supreme Federal Court). To be approved in the House plenary, the nominee needs at least 41 votes from the 81 senators.
Current attorney general of the Union, Messias will be questioned this Wednesday (29) by the CCJ (Constitution and Justice Commission). The expectation is that, on the same day, his name will also be voted on by the House plenary. If he receives the approval of the senators, he will take over the vacancy left by the retirement of Luís Roberto Barroso.
On the eve of the hearing, on Tuesday (28), members of the opposition had a meeting to align their position in the vote. The group projects to have 30 to 35 votes against in the plenary. The PL had already announced that it had closed the issue against Messias’ nomination.
The government base also held a meeting on the same day and aims for a score of 16 votes to 10 in the CCJ. In the collegiate, at least 14 votes are required for approval.
In the plenary, government allies and the nomination rapporteur, senator Weverton Rocha (PDT-MA), an estimated 45 votes. According to the rapporteur, the hearing must be “tough”, but Messias has enough votes for approval.
At the CCJ, the opposition aims to question Messias on sensitive issues such as abortion and the dosimetry of sentences for those convicted of the acts of January 8, in addition to the actions of Supreme Court ministers.
To overcome the opposition’s resistance, government supporters are counting on the support of members of the centrão, in addition to the vote of confidence from evangelical parliamentarians. Votes in the CCJ and in the plenary are secret, that is, there is no nominal record of the choice of each senator in the deliberation.
Messiah was nominated by the president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) on November 20 last year. For fear of rejection, the government did not immediately send the formal nomination to the Senate, which caused tension with the president of the House, senator Davi Alcolumbre (União-AP), which defended the name of the senator Rodrigo Pacheco (PSB-MG).
The message with the name of Messiah only came on April 1st of this year, after Planalto assessed that resistance to the name of the AGU was lower. Over the past five months, Messias has sought out parliamentarians, including those from the opposition, to gather support.
Previously considered for the position, Pacheco was one of those who expressed support for the name of the AGU. His party, the PSB, released a statement of support for Messias on Tuesday.
