What keeps Lula away from evangelicals?

The crisis that hit the PT in the last decade also marked a turning point in the party’s relationship with the evangelical segment. If in his first terms, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva managed to maintain a friendly relationship with pastors and evangelical leaders in Congress, the rise of Jair Bolsonaro on the national political scene attracted a large part of the Protestant flock, especially the Pentecostal branch, to the right.

In the last election of 2022, this advantage became clear: before the second round, Bolsonaro had 62% of voting intentions among evangelicals, against 32% for Lula, according to a Datafolha survey. In December 2023, in a new survey, the institute measured 38% disapproval of President Lula, a rate higher than the national average. Meanwhile, Bolsonaro remains popular in evangelical churches, especially due to the faith of former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro, always present at services and praises.

Aware of his separation, Lula has been trying to rebuild bridges, mainly through social programs and a discourse of conciliation. The biggest obstacle, however, according to those who know the environment well, is the identification of evangelicals with conservative values, linked to the preservation of the family formed by a couple between a man and a woman, repudiation of abortion and the LGBT agenda. At a time when the left becomes more identitarian, the gap between the PT and the churches deepens.

Last week, the evangelical bench in Congress was taken by surprise with the announcement of the revocation of a Revenue rule, approved by the Bolsonaro government, which guaranteed churches exemption from social security contributions on pastors’ remuneration. Parliamentarians linked to major denominations began to talk about persecution and blackmail, accusing the government of creating difficulties in obtaining support, in exchange for the possible return of the benefit.

But beyond that, what else keeps Lula away from evangelicals? It’s the topic of today’s conversation on the program Capital Matterbroadcast live from Brasilia, from People’s Gazette. In this edition, reporter Renan Ramalho welcomes Senator Damares Alves (Republicanos-DF).