Elected senator, president of Alesp tries to appoint a newcomer as successor and generates a split in the PL

Elected senator with the support of Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), the president of the Legislative Assembly of São Paulo, André do Prado (PL), caused a split in his own party by articulating the names of two newly elected allies as options for his succession, in an attempt to maintain influence in Alesp.

The PL was already the party with the most seats in the House, with 21 deputies. In last month's election, 27 were elected. The election of the new Board of Directors will take place in February, after the elected deputies take office.

In recent days, Prado began to defend the name of Rogério Franco (PL), former mayor of Cotia, as one of the possibilities to replace him as president. The other option articulated by him is Rodrigo Ashiuchi (PL), former mayor of Suzano. Both will be in their first term in 2027.

The report sought out the president of Alesp to comment on the movement, but the deputy did not respond.

Prado's action was poorly received on the bench, according to Folha. After the first round, PL deputies met in a group to articulate alternatives to their nominations and, initially, some thought about presenting demands to accept these names.

But, in the end, most decided not to support a first-term deputy. This is what the majority of the 15 deputies who participated in a bench meeting that took place on Tuesday (3) said.

The meeting usually takes place every week, but this time, parliamentarians from the group acted to ensure that the topic was discussed at the beginning. It was also suggested the creation of a list with signatures to press for the choice of a re-elected parliamentarian.

The main candidates, so far, are deputies Marcos Damasio, Ricardo Madalena, Tenente Coimbra, Alex de Madureira and Thiago Auricchio. The name of deputy Dani Alonso, who would have the sympathy of former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro (PL), was also mentioned.

At the meeting, deputies also expressed their desire to ensure that Prado's successor is committed to the end of re-election to the presidency of the House. Throughout his term, the elected senator managed to approve a change in the State Constitution that allowed his re-election.

One of the parliamentarians on the bench told the report that Prado was committed to the election of Franco and Ashiuchi, moving canvassers and councilors to support them. Therefore, sending either of them to the presidency would be a strategy by Prado to maintain influence over the House and the appointment of positions.

Other deputies with whom Folha spoke, however, considered that it was necessary to listen to him and dialogue with him. PL leader in the Assembly, Alex de Madureira stated that he will follow the party's definition. "What Valdemar [Costa Neto, national president of PL], Tadeu Candelária [state president] and André do Prado tell me to do, I will do. I will row in the same direction," he said.

Party deputies expect a name to be chosen by the end of November, at the latest by mid-December.

Prado is close to Valdemar and was elected president of the House in 2023 with the support of Tarcísio. The governor also worked to make it possible for the Senate. Prado obtained the approval of Eduardo Bolsonaro (PL) to run with the support of Bolsonaro supporters and, in the final stretch, he managed to get Tarcísio to negotiate the withdrawal of the candidacy of Ricardo Salles (Novo), with whom he was competing for votes.

According to members of the base, Tarcísio signaled to allies that he will not interfere in the succession of the Assembly, unless a name emerges that could oppose the government's interests.

The governor's interlocutors claim that he was uncomfortable with Prado's overt action to name a name and that he would prefer to nominate the government leader in Alesp, Gilmaci Santos (Republicans), or Madureira.

The lack of definition among PL deputies has been closely monitored by the Republicans, Tarcísio's party. In addition to Gilmaci, the party could also propose the candidacy of Danilo Campetti, a friend of the governor, who is also close to the Bolsonaro family, but who has transit between the other parties.

The government's fear, according to a member of the Republicans, is that the new president will have difficulties in leading the House in the next term, given the high number of influential parliamentarians, who could radicalize discussions to create "cuts" for social networks and halt the government's agenda.

In the PL itself there are names with this profile, such as elected deputy Eduarda Campopiano, who declares herself "the greatest enemy of feminists", Thomaz Henrique, who has already associated the PT with criminal factions, and Lisbon, which has already been the target of an operation during an investigation into anti-democratic acts.

In the election for the presidency of Alesp, each parliamentarian has one vote and whoever obtains the most votes wins. There is, however, an informal proportionality agreement that has governed the House for years. As the PL is the party with the most deputies, it wins the presidency. The PT, the second largest party in the Assembly, occupies the first secretariat, which is the second most important position on the Board of Directors.

Representative Paulo Fiorilo (PT) told the reporter that the party should meet on Tuesday (10) to discuss the succession of the presidency, pending the PL's decision.

"The president needs to be a person with experience and the ability to implement the rules to avoid chaos. He cannot turn the plenary into a big stage to do live shows or cuts to social media," he said.

For the first secretariat, Fiorilo is one of those selected, as are PT deputies Teonilio Barba, Professora Bebel, Emídio de Souza, Rômulo Fernandes and Thainara Faria.