Guilherme Boulos reduces the distance with the mayor …

The candidate Guilherme Boulos of the Socialism and Freedom Party (PSOL) he managed to go in three days from 42% to 45% of voting intention for the mayor of San Pablo. In this way he reduced the difference with the current mayor Bruno Covas of the Brazilian Social Democratic Party (PSDB) facing the second round of Brazilian municipal elections next Sunday.

Covas leads with 55% of valid votes (subtracts blank and canceled votes), against 45 percent of Boulos according to a survey published by Newspaper. A few days ago the former president Luiz Inacio “Lula” da Silva called on Workers’ Party voters to support the leftist candidate. According to the Boulos survey, a historical activist of the Homeless Workers Movement (MTST), is growing among black and low-income population.

With almost nine million voters San Pablo is the largest electoral college in the country, which gives its mayor a huge projection, even at the national level. More taking into account the resounding fall of candidates backed by President Jair Bolsonaro. If the invalid votes are counted, Covas has 48 percent and Boulos 40 percent. Of the total respondents, 9% said they would vote blank and 3% remain undecided. The result of the first electoral round of the mayor of San Pablo had been 32.85% for the current mayor, Y 20.24% for the PSOL candidate. At that time, Boulos was distancing himself from President Bolsonaro and the current state governor Joao Doria. “We defeated Bolsonaro, the project of hate, backwardness, lies that was trying to take hold in the city and now We are going to beat Joao Doria because he is the one who really rules the city of San Pablo“he told reporters.

Boulos, 38, was graduate in philosophy at the Catholic University of Sao Paulo. He is part of the MTST and joined the PSOL to participate in the 2018 elections as a candidate for the presidency. In addition to the support of the PT, whose candidate Jilmar Tatto obtained the 8.65% in the first round, In recent weeks, the former presidential candidate has also called for voting for him Ciro Gomesthe Democratic Labor Party; Flávio Dino, current governor of Maranhao for the Communist Party of Brazil; and the former Minister of the Environment Marina silva of the Sustainability Network (Rede) party.

PSDB Bastion

Covas came to the mayor of San Pablo in April 2018 to replace Doria, who that year ran for governor and won the election. Doria had been an ally of Bolsonaro in 2018 but they distanced themselves at the start of the pandemic. He is now considered presidential for the 2022 elections. However, Bolsonaro’s São Paulo candidate Celso Russomano, fourth in the first round with 10.5% of the vote, said he would support Covas. But the president did not publicly support the candidate “Tucano”, as it is called the PSDB of former president Fernando Henrique Cardoso. This party has ruled the richest state in Brazil for 25 years.

In the first round of November 15, there was third Marcio França of the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB), with 13.65% of the vote; in fifth place Arthur do Val, from Patriota with 9.78%. The abstention was 29.3%, more than the 21.8% recorded in the 2016 elections. This is explained by the fact that the coronavirus pandemic has hit São Paulo like no other large city in Brazil.

Anti-racist project

Boulos participated in the protests against racial violence that have taken place since Saturday in the country after the murder of black citizen José Alberto Silveira Freitas. The man had been severely beaten by the private security of a Carrefour supermarket in Porto Alegre. Due to the violence of the case, many compared it to that of American George Floyd. “I want to express my solidarity with the family of Beto Freitas. These scenes hurt and it hurts even more when you realize that this is not an isolated case. Our project is to make St.Paul an anti-racist city“said the candidate. He also criticized the assertion of Vice President of the Republic Hamilton Mourão that there is no racism in Brazil.”Can anyone imagine the supermarket scene with a white person? It’s pure racism“, argued the philosopher.

Regarding their government programs, Boulos said they would reopen the secretariat for racial equality. “We are going to recreate the secretariat that Doria and Bruno Covas completed. It is a pity that in the 21st century, the practices of structural racism are reproducing in Brazil“Said the head of MTST. Another proposal that will be launched to reach the mayor’s office are “Anti-racism” course for police personnelat. “This is one of the points that are in our government program, built with activists and activists of the black movement. Anti-racist policy can only be a facade. It must be transversal and with the presence of blacks in the secretariatSaid the candidate.