Zema: origin and phases of alliance with Bolsonaro – 01/19/2023 – Politics

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This week, the governor of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema (Novo), criticized the anti-democratic acts in Brasilia while citing an unproven thesis that the federal government had “a blind eye” to “remain as a victim”.

The speech was yet another sign of rapprochement between the Novo politician and former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL). Below, see six points that explain the relationship between Minas Gerais and Bolsonarism.

1. Gave Match
In 2018, Romeu Zema was little known and anchored his campaign in liberalism, anti-politics and anti-PTism, which brought him closer to Bolsonaro.

On the eve of the first round that year, in the debate on TV Globo, the businessman stated that those who wanted change should vote for João Amoêdo (Novo candidate) or Bolsonaro (at the time in the PSL). The flirtation earned a reprimand from Novo to the then candidate and catapulted him as the name of anti-PTism in the state

2. Rare Ally
Elected, Zema maintained his alignment with Bolsonaro, whom he only lightly criticized. At the beginning of the pandemic, the governor reproduced the denialist theses of the then president and even said, for example, that the virus should travel.

Unlike ally, however, retreated. He admitted that Bolsonaro’s attitude of not wearing a mask and provoking agglomerations did not help in the fight against the pandemic. He credited denialism with the defeat in the presidential election.

3. Lulema
Minas Gerais is the second largest electoral college in the country and has always reflected the results of the presidential election. Therefore, being with Zema, who was leading the polls, was what Bolsonaro wanted.

The governor, however, supported the Novo candidate, Luiz Felipe D’Ávila. The PL launched Carlos Viana, but Bolsonaro himself said he didn’t campaign for him much and mentioned Zema whenever he could.

However, the votes were not necessarily married, there was the phenomenon of Lulema –Lula and Zema were the winners of the first round. The governor was re-elected with 56.18%.

4. Together against the PT
A day after the first round, Romeu Zema went to Brasília to declare his support for Bolsonaro. He said they had differences, but they opposed the same caption. The governor was very active in the campaign in Minas, but he did not manage to turn it around in favor of Bolsonaro. Lula won by a narrow margin in the state, as well as in the country.

5. I condemn, but…
The January 8 episode served to reinforce the bond between Zema and Bolsonaro. It is important to remember that the one who acted to quell the coup camps in Belo Horizonte was not the state government, but the city hall of the capital, which is aligned with Lula. Click and remember the case in the previous edition.

Zema condemned the vandalism in Brasília, but stated that “there was also an error, perhaps even deliberate, by the federal government, which turned a blind eye to the worst happening and he later made himself the victim”, in an interview with Rádio Gaúcha.

6. What now?
Zema is seen as a right-wing name who can run for the Presidency of the Republic in 2026, especially in a context in which Bolsonaro may be ineligible and Tarcísio de Freitas, governor of São Paulo, is running for re-election.

More than the heir of Bolsonarism, it is interesting for Zema to position himself as the heir of anti-PTism. Now that extremism has given Bolsonaro a defeat at the polls and placed him under investigation, the miner has been careful when flirting with Bolsonarism, but reinforces his role as a representative of the right.