PT articulates 2024 election under Lula’s effect and tries to renew – 07/08/2023 – Power

When the polls were opened and counted in November 2020, the scenario could not be worse: for the first time since redemocratization, the PT was leaving an election without command of any of the 26 Brazilian capitals.

“It was rock bottom for the party in municipal disputes”, recalls Senator Humberto Costa (PT-PE).

Three years later, PT anticipates the discussion of strategies for the 2024 dispute to try to get back on top in a more favorable scenario, in charge of the federal government under the leadership of President Lula.

The tactics under discussion are divided between the strengthening of local alliances with Lula’s base parties, the desire to launch their own candidacies and the need to oxygenate the party, giving new names the opportunity to face the showcase of a majority dispute.

Without governing the main metropolises in the last legislatures, the party is at a disadvantage in political articulations against regional opponents. It will also have to deal with the effect of the high rejection of the party in parts of the country, such as the South and Midwest.

Among the 26 capitals, the PT members are on the way to having their own candidates more competitive in at least 6 of them: Fortaleza, Natal, Teresina, Aracaju, Porto Alegre and Vitória.

The agreements sealed in 2022 in the election that resulted in Lula’s victory over then-president Jair Bolsonaro (PL) should leave the PT out of the dispute in the two largest electoral colleges: São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

In São Paulo, the city where the party has run in all municipal elections since 1982, the PT must give up its candidacy for the first time to support federal deputy Guilherme Boulos (PSOL). In Rio, the party should climb the podium for the reelection of Mayor Eduardo Paes (PSD).

The same should happen in Belo Horizonte and Recife. In the first case, the PT still does not have a natural name and is divided between launching its own candidacy and supporting Mayor Fuad Norman (PSD) or Federal Deputy Duda Salabert (PDT). In Recife, an alliance with João Campos (PSB) is paved.

In all cases, the PT will fight to nominate the candidate for deputy mayor. But the path will not be easy in Rio and Recife, where current mayors are seen as potential candidates for governor of their states in 2026 and could resign mid-term if re-elected.

At the same time that it articulates support for allies, the PT mobilizes itself to build its own candidacies. The party’s GTE (Electoral Working Group) meets for the first time this Monday (10th) to start outlining strategies with an initial focus on cities with more than 200,000 voters

“We are going to establish a daring but realistic goal, also because the electoral fund’s resources are limited. But I think we are going to manage to grow and conquer a significant number of mayors”, says Humberto Costa, who chairs the working group.

In Fortaleza, which will be the third largest electoral college in dispute in 2024, the candidacy will depend on the resolution of the imbroglio involving PT and PDT, historical partners in the state that broke up in 2022. Mayor José Sarto (PDT) wants to run for re-election, but faces wear and tear.

The PT moves on two fronts. On the one hand, you can launch an organic candidacy, choosing between federal deputy Luizianne Lins and state deputy Larissa Gaspar.

Another possibility is to join a cadre from another party, which is aligned with Governor Elmano de Freitas (PT) and has electoral strength. In this case, the most quoted is Evandro Leitão (PDT), president of the Ceará Assembly.

In Vitória, the only capital in the Southeast where the PT must have a candidate, the party will repeat 2020 and launch former mayor João Coser, now a state deputy. He went to the second round in the last election, but ended up defeated by the current mayor Lorenzo Pazolini (Republicans).

“We are facing an election in a very hostile environment in 2020 and we have an expressive vote. Now, we are going to work to build a broader candidacy, bringing to our side, including center and center-right parties”, says Coser.

In Porto Alegre, the natural name is that of former deputy Edegar Pretto, who had a good performance in the election for the state government in 2022 and did not go to the second round by a narrow margin.

Appointed by Lula for the position of CEO of Conab (Companhia Nacional de Abastecimento), Pretto works on a leftist front to confront Mayor Sebastião Melo (MDB). Federal deputy Maria do Rosário and state deputy Sofia Cavedon are also considered in the party.

In Natal, the PT is betting on one of its most promising young cadres: Natália Bonavides, the most voted federal deputy in the capital of Rio Grande do Norte in 2022. Her asset is the support of Governor Fátima Bezerra (PT), but she still has difficulties in expanding alliances to beyond the left.

A city never governed by the PT, Teresina is another hope of the party to win in a capital. After breaking with Mayor Dr. Pessoa (Republicans), PT will run in 2024 with their own candidate and will choose between state deputies Franzé Silva and Fábio Novo.

In Aracaju, the bet is Eliane Aquino (PT), who was deputy governor from 2019 to 2022 and is the widow of former governor Marcelo Déda. Another possible candidate is Minister Márcio Macêdo (General Secretariat), who ran in 2020 and came in fourth.

There is still a lack of definition of the party in capitals such as Salvador, Curitiba and Manaus. In the Bahian capital, the party decided that it will present a pre-candidate, and state deputy Robinson Almeida has gained strength internally in recent weeks.

But the PT does not rule out supporting names of allied parties such as José Trindade (PSB) and Geraldo Júnior (MDB). The decision will be up to Governor Jerônimo Rodrigues (PT).

In capitals marked by anti-PTism in the last elections, the tendency is to form alliances with center and center-right parties, a strategy that should even include support for former PT members.

This is the case of Rio Branco, in Acre, where former mayor Marcos Alexandre resigned from the PT to occupy a position in the Electoral Justice. But he remains competitive and is courted by parties like the MDB.

In capitals where alliances do not advance, the party must make room for new cadres. The goal is to ensure the party’s visibility, strengthen new names and regain ground with an eye on the legislative elections in 2026.

In Manaus, one of the candidates is the PT’s national women’s secretary Anne Moura, who was a candidate for lieutenant governor in 2022. In Curitiba, one of the options is federal deputy Carol Dartora, the first black woman to be elected councilor in the capital of Paraná .

POTENTIAL PT CANDIDATES IN 2024 IN CAPITAL CAPITALS

• Strength – Luizianne Lins and Larissa Gaspar
• savior – Robinson Almeida, Vilma Reis and Maria Marighella
• Christmas – Natalia Bonavides
• Teresina – Fábio Novo and Franzé Silva
• Aracaju – Eliane Aquino and Márcio Macêdo
• João Pessoa – Cida Ramos and Luciano Cartaxo
• Porto Alegre – Edegar Pretto
• Victory – John Coser
• Curitiba – Carol Dartora
• Manaus – Anne Moura and Zé Ricardo
• Goiania – Adriana Accorsi and Edward Moreira
• cuiabá – Ludio Cabral and Rosa Neide
• Large field – Zeca from PT