Opposition to the right of Eduardo Paes shuffles elections in RJ – 09/17/2023 – Power

Recent actions against the military and the ministerial reform of President Lula (PT) have shaken up the electoral scenario of the opposition to the right of the mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Eduardo Paes (PSD). Pre-candidates that are still not viable are moving to secure their name for next year.

General Walter Braga Netto (PL), defended by allies of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL), and federal deputy dr. Luizinho (PP), chosen by governor Cláudio Castro (PL), are still identified as the strongest names capable of bringing together alliances. Recent national movements, however, have reduced the strength of pre-candidacies.

Senator Carlos Portinho (PL-RJ) and deputies Rodrigo Amorim (PTB-RJ) and Otoni de Paula (MDB-RJ) are those who have already made public their intention to run for the position. Others still move behind the scenes.

“I, Otoni and Portinho are having a very cordial dialogue. It is necessary to understand how to oppose Eduardo Paes. Our question is what is the best volume of candidacy for this. What we cannot allow is for the second round to be the left against the left”, said Amorim.

The deputy refers to a possible second round between Paes (whom he describes as left-wing, due to Lula’s support) and deputy Tarcísio Motta (PSOL), chosen as a pre-candidate in an internal dispute within the party.

Braga Netto had been accumulating wear and tear after the series of actions against military personnel as part of the digital militia investigation, which targets attacks on institutions, the coup attempt and the jewelry case, among other cases.

Doubts about the general’s willingness to expose himself in an electoral dispute increased after the approval of the award-winning collaboration agreement with Lieutenant Colonel Mauro Cid, Bolsonaro’s former aide-de-camp. They intensified on Tuesday (12) with the launch of Operation Perfidia, which investigates alleged fraud in bidding by the Federal Intervention Office, commanded by Braga Netto in 2018 and identified as one of the reserve officer’s possible electoral assets.

Dr. Luizinho, in turn, left the Health Secretariat of the Castro administration to take on the leadership of the PP, which had been vacant since the appointment of deputy André Fufuca (PP) to the Ministry of Sports. The departure has also been seen as a way to move away from investigations into irregularities in the department, revealed by TV Globo.

Within the PL itself, congressmen have been moving to gain space. Portinho attempted an approach with Novo to guarantee his pre-candidacy, but is now awaiting the general’s decision to try to gain ground.

The PL also intends to test in internal research the names of deputies Eduardo Pazuello, former minister of Bolsonaro, and Alexandre Ramagem, former head of Abin (Brazilian Intelligence Agency) in the previous administration. The first, however, also suffers wear and tear due to advances on the military.

Amorim has been trying to fill the void in the local opposition to Eduardo Paes. He has focused his parliamentary work on criticizing what he considers flaws in the city’s public order.

He is part of the Special Commission to Combat Urban Disorder in the Legislative Assembly and, recently, occupied the pulpit of the City Council to confront the Secretary of Public Order, Brenno Carnevale (PSD).

Amorim has the support of the president of Alerj, Rodrigo Bacellar (PL), who caused a crisis in PL-RJ at the beginning of the year by assigning the CCJ (Constitution and Justice Commission), the most important in the House, to the PTB ally. The two articulate a migration to União Brasil, where they intend to strengthen the pre-candidacy.

Otoni de Paula managed to be announced as a pre-candidate for MDB-RJ. Within the party, however, the definition will only take place in February of next year.

For allies of Cláudio Castro, the return of Dr. Luizinho à Brasília demands the creation of options for the governor to participate in the capital’s municipal dispute.

One of the suggestions is from former deputy Índio da Costa. Despite being affiliated with União Brasil, he is distant from local politics and has little viability among allies.

Within the PP, deputy Marcelo Queiroz observes the opposition’s movements to assess whether to enter the dispute. Internally, he presents as an argument the fact that he was the party’s deputy with the most votes in the capital. He has the sympathy of former governor Sérgio Cabral.

Castro’s team also does not rule out a possible support for Paes’ re-election. The movement, abrupt in relation to the alliance with Bolsonaro last year, would depend on a well-designed agreement around an alliance for the 2026 election, when the governor intends to run for the Senate.