She chose: it will be Lula. Center-right senator Simone Tebet, highly sought after after scoring third in the first round of Brazil’s presidential election with 4% of the vote, announced on Wednesday her support for the leftist candidate against Jair Bolsonaro, the far-right president. . , as part of the second round to be held on October 30.
“I will not vote blank, being neutral would be sinning by omission”
“I will vote for Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva because I recognize in him a commitment to democracy and the Constitution that I do not recognize in the president,” said Jair Bolsonaro, said Simone Tebet, 52, during a speech in front of the press in a hotel from São Paulo.
“I will not vote blank, to be neutral would be to sin by omission,” added this fervent Catholic, while her party, the Brazilian Democratic Movement (MDB), had not given instructions, preferring to let its members “follow their conscience.” . Former President Michel Temer, in office from 2016 to 2018 and of the MDB, for his part, chose to support Jair Bolsonaro.
“Thank you, Simone. Listening and respecting everyone, we will unite the differences to build a better and fairer country,” reacted Lula, who came first in the first round.
“Not a membership”
The senator, who weighs close to five million votes, nevertheless criticized the former leftist president, in power from 2003 to 2010, for having “called for a useful vote without presenting concrete proposals in the face of the real problems of Brazil.”
“My support for Lula is not membership. My support goes to a Brazil that dreams of being for everyone, inclusive, generous, without hunger or misery, with quality education and health, with sustainable development,” the former candidate tweeted.
Critics of Bolsonaro’s record
“For the last four years, Brazil has been abandoned to hatred and discord. Denial has delayed the purchase of (anti-Covid) vaccines, weapons have taken the place of books,” said this trained lawyer.
Last year, he had played a central role in the Senate Committee of Inquiry that delivered a damning report on the government’s handling of the pandemic.
Lula recorded another strong support this Wednesday: that of his center-right predecessor in the presidency Fernando Henrique Cardoso, elected from 1995 to 2002. The “FHC” announced on Twitter that it would vote for his opponent in the 1994 and 1998 presidential elections. according to him, it embodies “the fight for democracy and social inclusion”.
“In this second round, I vote for a history of fighting for democracy and social inclusion. I vote for Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva,” Fernando Henrique Cardoso wrote on Twitter.
“Thank you for your vote and your trust. Brazil needs dialogue and peace,” Lula replied on the same social network. A week before the first round, “FHC” called for a vote “for democracy,” but did not mention the name of the former leftist president.
Lula obtained last Sunday 48.4% of the votes, ahead of Jair Bolsonaro, whose score was better than expected, with 43.2%. The far-right president garnered significant support Tuesday, including from former anti-corruption judge Sergio Moro, his former justice minister, who nonetheless stepped down forcefully in 2020.
Jair Bolsonaro was also supported by the governors of the three most populous states in the country: Sao Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, who were joined on Wednesday by those of Paraná and the Federal District of Brasilia.
Source: BFM TV
