In an election less polarized than expected, the centrão emerges victorious once again
BRASILIA (Reuters) – A municipal election that was imagined to be marked by polarization between candidates led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and former President Jair Bolsonaro ended, once again, with a victory for the so-called centrão, with parties from the group winning the largest number of city halls in Sunday’s municipal disputes.
PSD and MDB won, respectively, 888 and 863 city halls, being the two biggest winners of the municipal election, with PP (752 cities) and União Brasil (590) right behind, according to a survey carried out by the G1 portal, with data updated until to 10:30 pm on Sunday.
In a typical movement of the center, the four parties are either from President Lula’s base or work closely with the Palácio do Planalto, despite the parties’ greater identification with the right, mainly PP and União Brasil — just as they did in the Bolsonaro government and in previous administrations.
The PL, Bolsonaro’s party, failed to reach the target of between 800 and 900 city halls designed by the party’s president, Valdemar Costa Neto. The PL won 523 mayors — an increase of 51.3% compared to 2020.
Without Lula’s direct involvement in the campaign this time, the PT came in ninth place among the parties with the most elected mayors, with 252 — an increase of 31% compared to 2020. The number was far from the party’s record, in 2012, when it elected 635 mayors, but, in the party’s assessment, it was a recovery after the 2020 result — the worst since 1996.
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Lula’s biggest victories in this first round were for non-PT candidates supported by him and who, according to his own assessments, did not need his explicit support: Eduardo Paes (PSD), in Rio de Janeiro, and João Campos (PSB), in Recife, with significant victories against Bolsonaro candidates — especially in Rio, where Bolsonaro personally fought for Alexandre Ramagem (PL).
In the dispute between the capitals in general, however, the PL came out on top. The party won in the first round in two, Maceió and Rio Branco, while the PT won none. Bolsonaro’s party still reached the second round in nine capitals with names from the party itself, while the PT reached only four.
In the second round, the biggest clash between Lula and Bolsonaro will be in São Paulo.
With the president’s support, Guilherme Boulos (PSOL) managed to reach the second round practically tied with mayor Ricardo Nune (MDB) – 29.48% to 29.07% of valid votes -, and now he must demand a more effective participation from Lula in your campaign.
On the other side, Nunes reached the second round with more than discreet support from Bolsonaro who, despite having nominated his vice-president, practically did not appear in the campaign.
Now, however, both sides must invest their big names in the dispute more vigorously.
In an interview after the result, Bolsonaro stated that the PL will “dive head first” into Nunes’ campaign, but did not promise his presence. At the same time, however, he said he would travel to the capitals where the PL has its own candidates.
“Maybe in São Paulo I don’t need to work hard because the approximately 30% (from Pablo Marçal, third place by PRTB with 28.14% of valid votes) won’t go to Boulos,” said Bolsonaro.
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Lula did not speak after the vote, but the president of the PT, Gleisi Hoffmann, promised that the party will work for Boulos, whose vice-president is PT member Marta Suplicy.
“I can’t help but talk about São Paulo, the importance of having Boulos in the second round, showing the resilience of the left-wing forces. We are going to articulate ourselves with our activism and now, starting on Monday, there will be another election to make Boulos the mayor of São Paulo”, he said.
