Bolsonaro prepares agenda for rallies and demonstrations in the states

The party commitments of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) registered in the interior of São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul and now in Bahia show a trend: the former president will continue with an intense pre-election agenda despite investigations by the Federal Police that they try to link him to an alleged coup attempt. The PL also plans to promote demonstrations to continue the movement in support of Bolsonaro that began on February 25, on Avenida Paulista, in São Paulo. According to two sources close to the former president, planning is underway to hold an event in each region of the country in the coming months.

Considering that the state of São Paulo has already hosted the first event, in the Southeast, the following demonstrations should take place in the North, Northeast, South and Central-West regions. The date and location of the new event have not yet been defined, but the expectation is that it will take place in March. The acronym’s focus is to fulfill the objective established by President Valdemar Costa Neto of electing at least a thousand mayors across the country in the October elections this year.

In the assessment of political scientist Adriano Cerqueira, professor at Ibmec in Belo Horizonte (MG), Bolsonaro’s performance in the interior is a reflection of the low popularity of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) recorded by recent polls.

“It is very clear that the PL’s strategy was to invest in Bolsonaro’s electoral capital, which is very high. He is today the main voice of opposition to Lula. On the other hand, Lula has helped him a lot. We saw in this last survey that it was published, as his evaluation is very bad. This is opening space for the opposition”, said the political scientist.

According to an Atlas Intel survey released this Thursday (7), the positive evaluation fell from 52% to 47%, and disapproval rose from 43% to 46%. The institute interviewed, via the internet, 3,154 people from March 2 to 5, 2024. The margin of error is plus or minus 2 percentage points and the confidence level is 95%.

Visit to Bahia aims to reverse 2022 electoral result

Upon landing in Bahia, this Friday (8), Jair Bolsonaro was cheered by supporters at Luís Eduardo Magalhães Airport, in Salvador, and received by a motorbike. In addition to being present at a PL Mulher event, on Saturday (9), the former president’s visit to the state has the strategic goal of reversing the challenging electoral scenario for the year 2022.

In the last presidential contest, Bolsonaro garnered just 27.88% of the votes, totaling 2,357,028 valid votes. On the other hand, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) achieved a significant advantage, securing 72.12% of the electorate, equivalent to 6,097,815 valid votes.

The PL Mulher event will also serve as a stage for newly affiliated members of the party to be introduced to the electorate. This is the case of former state deputy Soldado Prisco and former councilor Cézar Leite. Both will compete for seats in the Salvador City Council.

The presence of pre-candidates for mayor is also expected, such as councilor Gabriel Bandarra (PL), Tenóbio, from Lauro de Freitas; engineer Francisco França, pre-candidate for mayor of Itabuna; and Lieutenant Colonel França, pre-candidate for mayor Teixeira de Freitas.

Asked about the former president’s visit and the party’s challenges to the state, federal deputy Captain Alden (PL-BA) states that Bolsonaro’s trip to Bahia helps the right in the process of ideological change in the state.

“Being able to count on former President of the Republic Jair Bolsonaro on Bahian soil is essential for us to begin a reformulation of how Bahia is seen, a place that is unfortunately governed by the left, but we will begin to change this from this year’s municipal elections. scenario”, said the parliamentarian.

The report also asked what the party’s strategies would be to make this change happen, but the Bahian deputy stated that it would not be prudent to comment. However, he said that former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro will also play an important role in the dispute.

“What I can say at the moment is that Bolsonaro will be our main electoral campaigner and the former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro will play a vital role in this journey towards “disparaging” Bahia and Brazil”, he commented.

Bolsonaro’s agenda shows political maturity

Bolsonaro’s pre-election performance marks a change in the former president’s position in relation to politics. Initially averse to party issues, a stance that marked his performance as a deputy, Bolsonaro focused his efforts in 2023 on structuring the party for the legislative clash against the PT, as well as increasing the party’s reach in the states.

Commenting on this aspect, political scientist Elton Gomes, professor at the Federal University of Piauí (UFPI), observes that Bolsonaro has “matured” in relation to the stance he had as a deputy and even president of the Republic.

“This maturity occurred because he became two important things within national politics: one of the main party leaders in the country and the main name of the opposition”, stated Gomes.

He said that the need to receive demands from mayors, while he was head of the Executive, forced Bolsonaro to pay more attention to municipal issues.

“Before becoming president, he had an understanding of the Executive Branch from the perspective of the parliamentarian, who is the “gateway” of resources for the state governor and mayors. When he became president, he had to deal with the frequent demands of Brazilian municipalities – most of them without fiscal autonomy and dependent on transfers from the Union and the state”, he said.

In 2023, Bolsonaro focused on the Southeast and Michelle, on the North and Northeast

In addition to his visits this year, São Paulo is the state that the former president has visited most since returning from the United States in 2023. Whether in the capital or in the interior, the former president has already visited the region five times. Furthermore, he was in Santa Catarina and Goiás three times. Minas Gerais was the destination on two occasions.

On the other hand, Michelle sought to diversify agendas in the North and Northeast states, regions considered Lula’s electoral strongholds. This year alone, she has already visited Rondônia, Pernambuco, Paraíba, Ceará and Pará. In these last two states, she was accompanied by Bolsonaro.

The honors given to the former president were also highlighted during the visits, having received citizenship titles in Minas Gerais, Cuiabá, Barretos (SP) and São Bernardo do Campo. The last city mentioned is located in the metropolitan region of São Paulo and is Lula’s stronghold, where the PT member worked as a metalworker and trade unionist.