Raquel Lyra’s campaign financier takes on PSDB in PE – 11/22/2023 – Power

The governor of Pernambuco, Raquel Lyra, appointed businessman Fred Loyo to succeed her as president of the PSDB in Pernambuco. He was one of the financiers of Tucana’s campaign in the 2022 elections.

The governor confirmed last Monday (20) the change of command in a meeting with the party’s three state deputies. Fred Loyo is one of the main entrepreneurs in the hotel sector in Pernambuco.

He was a candidate for first alternate senator on the ticket of the defeated candidate Guilherme Coelho (PSDB) in 2022, when he declared to the Electoral Court an asset of R$6.6 million, one of the largest among majority candidates in the state.

In the 2022 campaign, Fred Loyo donated R$70,000 to Raquel Lyra’s campaign, according to the DivulgaCandContas platform, from the TSE (Superior Electoral Court). There were two transfers: one of R$50 thousand, on September 2nd, and another of R$20 thousand, on September 16th, both via electronic transfer.

Donations from individuals and their own resources are currently legal for electoral campaigns, with the donor’s CPF identified.

The businesses of Fred Loyo, 52, are mainly concentrated in the Porto de Galinhas region, the main resort and tourist destination in Pernambuco, located in the metropolitan region of Recife.

The businessman’s inauguration at the helm of Pernambuco’s PSDB has not been scheduled. A party convention is scheduled for next week, but there is no confirmation whether the new president will be defined at this meeting.

Loyo’s appointment to lead the party also has political effects. There is dissatisfaction among state party deputies because it is a politically inexperienced name.

One of those who was upset is the president of the Legislative Assembly, Álvaro Porto, with whom Raquel has had a tense and suspicious relationship throughout the year, even though he is also from the PSDB. Álvaro has sought the mark of independence from the Legislature, which displeases his supporter.

Álvaro’s main complaint, according to interlocutors, is the lack of dialogue on the part of the governor about Loyo’s choice. The president of the Assembly told Raquel Lyra, at the meeting, that around 15 candidates for mayor from his political group for the 2024 elections will not join the PSDB.

He also signaled to Raquel that he could take command of the PSDB if he had the governor’s approval, which did not happen.

Álvaro Porto was re-elected to the presidency of the Assembly last week, with 40 votes in favor among the 49 parliamentarians. The loose score was seen as a message from the Legislature.

The vote, which was only scheduled for 2025 and is valid for the 2025/2026 biennium, was brought forward, which displeased the tucana. Deputies want improved political articulation and more dialogue from the Executive when voting on projects.

The government leader in the Legislative Assembly, Izaías Régis, however, evaluates the future president of the PSDB positively. “He is a successful, prepared and novice businessman. We have to renew as a whole. He participated in Raquel’s campaign in 2022,” he says.

“It’s not that she’s going to leave the party, it’s that she’s out of time [para presidir o PSDB]”, adds the government leader.

Other allies of the governor privately do not rule out that the change in command of the PSDB, currently chaired by her herself, is related to a possible future party change.

The reading of this wing is that the governor could soon command another party, while maintaining a first-time ally, Fred Loyo, in command of the PSDB-PE.

The main factors for a possible change of party are the PSDB’s loss of political muscle and the movement to get closer to President Lula (PT). The tucanos are historic opponents of the PT at national level.

Even with the PSDB in fragility, leading the party in the state interests Raquel to guarantee more time for electoral propaganda on radio and television in 2026.

The PSD, which has three ministries in the Lula government, is the most popular party at the moment, but there are no negotiations concluded or doors closed to other centrist parties.

The party entered Raquel’s allied base in September, after breaking with the mayor of Recife, João Campos (PSB), and is led in the state by Lula’s Minister of Fisheries, André de Paula.