Brazil: the policy won with the traditional center-right

“Politics won,” said the mayor-elect of Rio de Janeiro, Eduardo Paes, from the center-right Democratic Party (DEM). “He lost the left”, he harangued Flavio Dino, the Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB) and governor of Maranhao, a state in northeastern Brazil. Both synthesized the new reality of the country that the municipal elections concluded this Sunday (in the second round). Paes was one of the big winners, when he wrested the office of the mayor of Carioca from the hands of the president Jair Bolsonaro.

The “Bolsonarismo” had another defeat: the city of San Pablo, where its candidate of heart, Celso Russomano, did not even contest the position in the poll. São Paulo winner he was Bruno Covas of the Social Democratic Party of Brazil (PSDB). Who can also be successful is his godfather Joao Doria, governor of the state, who saw his chances of becoming a presidential candidate for his party, the PSDB, increase in 2022. “You have to understand that he there was a largely victorious right in the elections. municipalities “insisted Dino, but added:” But the left is not scorched earth. ”

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Perhaps the left is not, in short, of its different forces: between them, a little more than 15% of the Brazilian electorate will govern; It is not so far from the PSDB, which hit 16%, nor from the MDB (Brazilian Democratic Movement) with 14%.

But the Workers’ Party, led by Lula da Silva, revealed a fundamental inability to recover from the blow suffered in 2016 when, in the municipal elections, he lost control of the 19% he had reached in 2012. Four years ago, the members of the PT had collapsed to 3% of the municipal leadership. Today, it is literally stagnating at this rate.

However, during the 2018 national championships, it was the only party to have reached a level sufficient to contest the second round of the presidency with Bolsonaro.

The “Bolsonarismo” had another defeat: the town of San Pablo, where its candidate from the heart, Celso Russomano could not even challenge the position in the ballot

In this electoral process, which covered more than 5,500 cities across the country, there were a politician known for his role in the country’s largest city. It is Guilherme Boulos, of the Socialism and Freedom Party. The ex-president Fernando Henrique Cardoso placeholder image (The Social Democrat) has just underlined: “He is an emerging leader. He first showed dedication to popular causes. He went to live near popular neighborhoods and is closely linked to the Homeless Movement. When he speaks, he gives me the impression of imitating Lula a bit ”.

For Cardoso, who reigned between 1995 and 2002, “Boulos symbolizes the dissatisfaction of many people with life in a big city. I think it’s possible, probably, that I’ll be a leader in the future. “The young sociologist, who won 40.6% of São Paulo’s vote, can commemorate his historic performance. But he cannot bet, at least not yet, on his role in the upcoming national elections in 2022.

In agreement with Cardoso, José Alvaro Moises, former director of the political science department of the USP, also underlined “the emergence of a new left, younger and more vigorous, and with a different position compared to the left of the PT”.

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The center-right is the political segment that has achieved the best results. Three traditional parties from these groups made significant progress in these municipal elections: DEM (Democrats), led by Antonio Carlos Magalhaes’ grandson; the Social Democratic Party (PSD), founded in 1945; and the Progressive Party (PP), to which President Bolsonaro belonged in the past.

The group will lead 32% of the Brazilian electorate. The DEM, precisely, took Rio de Janeiro from the candidate of the President of Brazil, Marcelo Crivella. The new mayor Paes is part of this group, of which the head of the Chamber of Deputies Rodrigo Maia, critic of the head of state, is also a member.

Political scientist Claudio Couto, from the Getulio Vargas Foundation in San Pablo, assessed the performance of the national government: “Bolsomaro did not have his own party to contest the elections and lost the opportunity to strengthen a structure that could be useful in 2022 ”.

This means that he “will not be able to buy” the universe of the center-right groups, and not even rent it. The sociologist Moisés was more energetic, to whom Bolsonaro is the “great vanquished” in these elections.

* Author from Brazil 7 days.