Moro responds to criticism from the candidate he supported in Curitiba: “The problem is the surname”

The senator Sergio Moro (União Brasil-PR) called Ney Leprevost (União Brasil)defeated candidate for mayor of Curitiba (PR), is a liar and stated that the state deputy wants to transfer responsibility for his defeat to him.

The statements were given to the Estadão in response to Leprevost’s statements to the newspaper Folha de S. Paulo. The fourth-placed candidate in the race for mayor of Curitiba said that the participation of the senator and his wife, Rosângela Moro, as vice-president on the União ticket would have led to his defeat. In a statement, the state deputy refuted the statements, calling Moro a “contumacious traitor”.

Moro stated that the invitation for his wife to be part of the ticket came from Leprevost, who had insisted several times – something the state deputy denies. “I apologize to the people of Curitiba for having accepted the party’s national imposition of having his wife as vice president,” declared Leprevost.

According to the senator, during the campaign, the state deputy “ended up choosing to run alone. So much so that I didn’t appear on his electoral program and neither did any of the representatives of União Brasil, national or state,” Moro alleged.

Leprevost’s strategy of presenting himself as a “system” politician was also criticized by Moro. “(Leprevost if) He presented himself as an old politician from the system, wearing a suit and tie even during debates, and was unable to connect with the population of Curitiba”, he argues.

For the former Lava Jato judge, the state deputy’s comments are an attempt to shift the blame for the defeat. “He lost, he chose to lose alone.”

Moro also stated: “I was elected in Curitiba with 40% of the votes for senator, and today the polls point to me as the favorite for the state government. So, there is no problem with electoral popularity, the problem was the candidate”.

In his note, Leprevost replied: “If you were loved by the people of Curitiba as you claim, you would not need to be surrounded by security guards paid by the Brazilian people even to go to the fair.” The senator also said that he only spoke about the matter because he was attacked and declared that the state deputy “came out of the election small, and now the smallness is also reflected in these statements”. And he added that Ney Leprevost was unable to elect his brother, Alexandre Leprevost (União Brasil), who remained as a substitute. “To show that the problem is not with us (Moro couple). The problem is the surname Leprevost.”

The Union state deputy, in turn, accused his former ally of being a national hero who became diminished and turned into a “social media scavenger”. “Forget me and go defend yourself in court. Because you are the defendant in a criminal case, not me,” he stated in the note.

Leprevost’s ticket received 60,675 votes (6.49% of valid votes) and came in fourth place. The mayor of Curitiba will be contested by the current vice-mayor, Eduardo Pimentel (PSD), and Cristina Graeml (PMB). They had, respectively, 313,347 votes (33 51% of valid votes) and 291,523 votes (31.17% of valid votes). The second round will be on October 27th.