‘Propaganda’, ‘crime’, ‘abuse of power’: opposition reacts to pro-Lula parade

The tribute by Academicos de Niterói to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) in Marquês de Sapucaí provoked a massive reaction from opposition leaders, who classified the parade as “regime propaganda”, “crime”, “serious electoral offense” and “depressing spectacle of abuse of power”.

The Novo Party announced that it will sue the Electoral Court to request Lula’s ineligibility. In a publication on X, the party stated that the parade was “a piece of propaganda for the Lula regime” financed with public money. The party’s president, Eduardo Ribeiro, declared that, as soon as Lula registers his candidacy, the party will file an Electoral Judicial Investigation Action (AIJE) requesting revocation of registration and ineligibility. “The law must be the same for everyone,” he wrote.

“Early campaign” and “crime”

Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ) stated that the parade was “a crime” and accused Lula of using public money “to campaign in advance for himself”.

“Lula fleeces the people with tax increases and uses the same money raised to campaign in advance for himself. Yes, the money from the sweat of the Brazilian working people (…) is being wasted in a carnival parade”, he wrote. The senator also compared the episode to the conviction of Jair Bolsonaro in the TSE, saying that the former president was rendered ineligible “by a meeting with ambassadors and for speaking in a sound car that did not cost a cent of public money”.

He did not mention that Bolsonaro was convicted of meeting with ambassadors to launch attacks without evidence against the Brazilian electoral system.

Former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro shared a video of an allegory that portrayed Bolsonaro as a clown with an electronic ankle bracelet and wrote: “The person who was arrested for corruption was Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. This is a judicial record and not an opinion.”

“Serious illicit” and “abuse of power”

The leader of the PL in the Senate, Carlos Portinho, stated that there was “serious electoral fraud” and “advance propaganda with tax payer’s money”. “When culture mixes with politics, culture loses,” he wrote, adding that “interference in the elections, now that of 2026, has already begun.”

Senator Sergio Moro (União Brasil-PR) classified the parade as “a depressing spectacle of abuse of power”. In a publication on X, he stated that Lula was praised “without corruption scandals” and attacks on opponents, saying that “North Korea would not do better”.

Representative Nikolas Ferreira (PL-MG) wrote that, if the parade had taken place in 2022, Bolsonaro would be arrested, with “search and seizure in the PL, seizure in the school shed” and “lifetime ineligibility”.

Senator Cleitinho (Republicanos-MG) stated that the parade was an “electoral campaign” and questioned what the Federal Supreme Court’s reaction would be if the situation were reversed.

The governor of Minas Gerais, Romeu Zema, criticized the way conservative voters were portrayed and said that they would be “trivialized throughout Brazil by a bloc financed with money from the federal government”.

Pressure on the TSE

Criticism also targeted the financing of Carnival. Embratur committed R$12 million to the 12 schools in the Special Group, with R$1 million going to Academicos de Niterói. Deputies from Novo asked the Federal Audit Court (TCU) to impose a fine of R$9.65 million on those responsible for the plot, after the court had already denied the request to suspend the transfers.

Before the presentation, parties such as Novo and Missão called the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) to try to stop the samba-enredo. On the 12th, the TSE rejected the request, although minister Cármen Lúcia stated that there was a “very concrete, plausible” risk of possible illicit activity.

The parade did not have an express request for votes, which is prohibited by electoral legislation, and there is no confirmation of misuse of public resources beyond the official transfers destined to all schools in the Special Group.