Dino goes to the STF thanks to the government’s “crude game” and the opposition’s mistakes

The approval of Flávio Dino for the Federal Supreme Court (STF) by the Senate plenary, on Wednesday night (13), was the result of the government’s heavy coordination, in collaboration with members of the Court itself. At the same time, she frustrated the strategies of the right, which tried to block the nomination by exploiting the high rejection of the Minister of Justice both in Congress and in society. The minister will take office at the STF in February, after the Judiciary recess. Until then, he must remain in office.

Of the 81 senators, the future STF minister obtained 47 votes in favor, 31 against and two abstentions. Cristiano Zanin, lawyer for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) and his first nominee in the current third term, received 11 more votes than Dino in the plenary, totaling 58 supports. The reduced margin of approval placed Dino, Lula’s second nominee to the Supreme Court in 2023, at the same level as André Mendonça, then minister of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL), who until then had the lowest endorsement among all the approved nominees. through the house.

In the preparatory vote, in the Constitution and Justice Commission (CCJ), after almost 11 hours of hearing, Dino received 17 votes in his favor along with the biggest rejection in the collegiate: 10 votes against, compared to Mendonça’s nine. In order to at least reach the necessary minimum of 14 in the CCJ and 41 in the plenary, the minister was helped by a concentrated effort, which included the dismissal of four government ministers to resume their positions in the Senate and vote in favor of Dino, in addition the release of federal funds, last-minute bargains forwarded by Planalto negotiators and the rapid confirmation process, over the course of 17 days, of the nomination to the Senate. In collaboration with these initiatives was the secret nature of the votes.

Opposition senators see “crude game” between government and STF

Senator Eduardo Girão (Novo-CE) was the first to denounce the “crude game” of the government and the STF to approve Dino’s name in the Senate. He stated that the Court ministers and representatives of the Planalto called the senators, with this objective.

“The Republic’s Revision House missed a great opportunity to show its pride and who it serves,” said Girão.

Dino went through the formal screening of the hearing, despite questioning about several controversies, including his performance on January 8th, considered by the opposition to be silent or purposely null. Calmly, he replied that he had not been alerted by the intelligence system and that he had no legal basis to activate the National Force.

Flávio Dino’s hearing together with that of prosecutor Paulo Gonet, appointed to the Attorney General’s Office (PGR), was not only unprecedented in its form, but also in the security scheme involved, with access blocks, including for the press . The appeals of senator Alessandro Vieira (MDB-SE), supported by the opposition, to separate the hearing of the two nominees were solemnly denied by the president of the CCJ, Davi Alcolumbre (União Brasil-AP). He justified the simultaneous session with the decision of the president of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), to make a “concentrated effort” to fulfill the agenda.

This orchestration to facilitate the forwarding of Dino’s nomination also included agreements to release funds to states represented by the most influential leaders among Dino’s voters in the hearing at the CCJ and in the plenary, starting with Alcolumbre himself. In the three days following the announcement of the date for the hearing, the government committed R$73.9 million to Amapá, the senator’s state. Only on Thursday (7) there were R$55.4 million, the fourth largest release of the year.

On December 11 and 12, a historic record of R$9.9 billion was paid in the form of parliamentary amendments by the Lula government to Congress. Throughout the year, until December 12, R$39.2 billion in parliamentary amendments had already been paid in 2023, according to data from the Siga Brasil website. The resources arrived before the Dino and Gonet hearing and the vote on important matters, such as Provisional Measure 1,185, which provides for taxation on state subsidies from the Tax on Circulation of Goods and Services (ICMS), and the proposal for the taxation of sports betting online, approved this week by the Senate.

In the opinion of those in government, Dino’s victory crowned a strategy to show a majority in the Senate and a partnership with the STF. With the minister’s arrival at the Court, there will be reinforcement in the fight against so-called Bolsonarism, an aspect that unites Planalto and magistrates. Proof of this is in the reaction to Dino’s victory in the Senate issued by minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the STF, rapporteur of the Fake News Inquiry, president of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) and rapporteur of the processes involving January 8th.

“Congratulations to the Senate. Our Powers and Institutions are strengthened with the approval of Minister Dino for the STF”, said Moraes through his account on platform X (formerly Twitter). Days before announcing Dino, at the end of November, Lula told journalists that his Justice Minister would stay in the position where he would be “most useful”. With Dino, there are seven members of the Court appointed by the PT. In a way, the 11 ministers have adopted positions favorable to the government’s interests.

Where the right went wrong

According to analysts, the right-wing strategy was frustrated because it was dependent, among other things, on Dino’s usual behavior, more combative and debauched, which did not occur during his journey in search of support and during the hearing.

On the other hand, campaigns on social media and street demonstrations last Sunday (9) did not perform as expected, still affected by fears of retaliation from the STF and the lack of spontaneous engagement from society’s entities. Opinion polls showing popular aversion against the nomination also did not have the expected impact on undecided senators. They were protected from the scrutiny of public opinion by the secret vote, guaranteed for voting on nominees for highly relevant positions.

Another initiative that did not achieve the expected impact was the petition opened by the Novo party, which gathered 426 thousand signatures. When Dino’s voting panel opened in the plenary, opposition senators, such as Eduardo Girão (Novo-CE), Cleitinho (Republicanos-MG) and Jorge Seif (PL-SC), made one last protest, allowing themselves to be filmed typing the no vote from their seats.

Parliamentarians are now betting on the renewal of the Senate in 2026

The tone of dismay was also expressed by some opposition parliamentarians after the result in the Senate. “I did everything that could be done and even more, but we lost one more,” complained congressman Gustavo Gayer (PL-GO), organizer of the virtual panel ComoVotaSenador, to pressure undecided senators to present their votes. He defended the renewal of the Senate as the only way to overcome the “successive defeats of the population”.

Senator Damares Alves (Republicanos-DF) regretted the defeat, but made a positive assessment, marking the number of 33 votes against and abstentions as a reference of resistance to judicial activism. For her, the score is a message about the importance of the 2026 elections, when two thirds of the Senate seats will be renewed at the polls. This would be the opportunity for conservative senators to achieve a majority.

On social media, both left and right agreed that Flávio Dino’s name for STF involves a political position. This argument was used by the right during the hearing and, in a way, by Dino himself and his allies, who praised the historically political character of the STF in Brazil and other democracies. The nominee and his supporters also made a point of talking about the revolving door of politicians with mandates who wore the Supreme Court’s robes, presenting this as a commonplace fact.

One of the scenes that most embarrassed the opposition in its effort to beat Dino came from the stance of senator Sergio Moro (União Brasil-PR), critical of the Lula government and the behavior of the Minister of Justice. After appearing laughing and hugging in photos posted on the internet with Dino at the hearing, Moro was even warned by allies in WhatsApp messages not to expose his vote.

Among those most uncomfortable with this stance is former deputy and former federal prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol (Novo), pre-candidate for Mayor of Curitiba. Asked how he voted for the CCJ, Moro did not respond and even committed the mistake of saying he was awaiting “greetings” from Dino.

The family of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) immediately reacted against the situation led by Moro. Rio de Janeiro councilor Carlos Bolsonaro (Republicans) even mocked the hug given between the senator and the Minister of Justice during the hearing. When reproducing a photo of that moment, he commented: “I almost got scared, but we have to unite the right.”