Brazil’s next president, Lula da Silva, will have a strong regional counterweight. Of the country’s 27 states, most remain in the hands of conservative governors, though not necessarily Bolsonaros. The state of São Paulo is the economic engine of the country Home to more than 46 million Brazilians, Bolsonaro will be managed by former infrastructure minister Tarcio de Freitas. Brazil’s most populous region has always been in the hands of the moderate right, but now it has once again turned the screw and thrown itself into the arms of Bolsonaroism. Former minister Fernando Haddad was a last-minute replacement for Lula in elections four years ago And the former mayor of São Paulo achieved the Workers’ Party’s (PT) best historic result in this hostile region, but it was not enough.
In his first public appearance since his victory, Darcio Gómez de Freidas downplayed a potential confrontation with Lula. “We are going to look at the interests of the state of São Paulo. Understand that it is necessary to have an alliance with the central government so that we can come up with common policies,” he said. , it shows that the other is more conservative. But the decision is sovereign”, he warned, even as his political boss Bolsonaro was slow to admit his defeat.
Despite the victory in São Paulo, Bolsonaro’s strategy of entrusting strong names in his government to consolidate regional power has only partially worked. The right is dominant, but not necessarily Bolsonarista. In another key state, Rio Grande do Sul, former minister Onyx Lorenzoni, who started as a favorite, was defeated by the incumbent. Governor Eduardo Light, a young gay politician He also tried to run for president last year. Leet belongs to the PSDB, which has been the main center-right party for much of Brazil’s recent history. Although it no longer exists, the party is not completely dead and governs three states: Rio Grande do Sul, Mato Grosso do Sul and Pernambuco. It is the right that Lula does not have so many difficulties in conversation.
The win in Pernambuco is of particular interest. Raquel Lira will be a conservative governor in Lula’s home state and in the country’s most progressive region, the Northeast Center. The future president spent the campaign refusing to say who he would vote for in the second round for fear of losing votes, something his opponents identified as favoring Bolsonaro. His rival was another woman, Marilia Ares, a rarity in a notable male election. Personally, Lyra had to face a very difficult campaign: on the day of the first round of voting, her 44-year-old husband died suddenly.
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For the PT, one of the few non-qualifying victories came from the state of Bahia. Salvador’s well-known mayor, ACM Neto, was about to achieve the historic milestone of wresting one of its strongholds from the center-right, left, but Lula’s pro-candidate Jerônimo Rodrigues eventually won. Future Governor Bahian He started the election campaign as a complete unknown, but grew with Lula’s support and some verbal slurs from ACM Neto, who defined himself as a mestizo in Brazil’s black state.
Of the 12 states decided in this second round, five were apparently in the hands of Bolsonaro governors (São Paulo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Rondônia, Santa Catarina and Amazonas); Four PT or more are Lula-related (Bahia, Alagos, Espirito Santo, and Paraíba) and three are governed by the moderate center-right (Rio Grande do Sul, Pernambuco, Sergib).
Nine of the 15 governors elected on October 2 declared their support for Bolsonaro and six for Lula. In that first round, the far-right leader had already managed to secure important strongholds, notably Rio de Janeiro, where he began his political career, and Minas Gerais, the country’s second most populous state, which was crucial to the decision. Election result..
In Minas, the victory of Governor Romeu Zema, a liberal who, although seemingly neutral, ended up swearing allegiance to the far right, was expected to be key to winning votes for the president to achieve a national balance, but the strategy did not work. Although Minas voted for a conservative governor, a majority of its population chose Lula for president.
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