Electoral reform will reward those with a political base, not those who go viral, says rapporteur
Deputy Domingos Neto (PSD-CE), rapporteur of the electoral reform proposal that creates the mixed district system, stated that the change will strengthen the parties and reduce the weight of money and social networks in disputes.
“Those who will have an advantage are those who have a political base. It will be worth much more than money, than YouTube, than TikTok. What will count is the hand-to-hand, the accountability, the work done and the knowledge of the community”, said the parliamentarian in an interview with Folha de S.Paulo.
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Domingos Neto’s proposal divides states into districts, in which half of the deputies would be elected by majority vote and the other half by party lists. The model would replace the current proportional system, in which candidates with few votes can be elected thanks to the performance of “legend pullers”.
According to the deputy, the project already has the support of the PT and PL, the two largest parties in the Chamber. He waits for the President of the House, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB), to define the date for voting. “I spoke to several party leaders and presidents. The text is ready, we just need the right time to put it on the agenda”, he stated.
For Domingos Neto, the new model could make it difficult for criminal factions to infiltrate politics, by restricting the number of candidates per district and increasing the visibility of local disputes.
“Today, crime infiltrates elections because it is easy to hide candidates among thousands. In the district system, with 10 or 12 candidates per district, the Public Ministry, the press and opponents will be better able to monitor. It is much more difficult for a factionalist to participate in a debate”, he said.
New rules
The parliamentarian also highlighted that the new system should make electoral campaigns cheaper, by bringing candidates closer to their voters and reducing the need for large investments in advertising.
The proposal resumes debates that began in the Senate in 2017, when a similar text, authored by then-senator José Serra (PSDB-SP), was approved, but did not advance in the Chamber.
With the party system leaner after the barrier clauses and party federations, Domingos Neto believes that there is now a political environment to approve the change.
“Today’s Congress is different. We have fewer parties and more conditions to discuss a system that brings representation and transparency”, he concluded.
