Tarcísio de Freitas declares support for Flávio Bolsonaro in possible second round

On Friday (2), Tarcísio stated that, if Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) advances to the second round of the race for the Presidency, he is willing to help him in the campaign in São Paulo and “even outside the state”. The statement was made during a campaign walk through the center of São Paulo, alongside mayor Ricardo Nunes (MDB) and Senate candidate André do Prado (PL).

Tarcísio participated this Saturday (3), the day before the first round, in a motorbike motorcade between Santa Bárbara d'Oeste and Americana, in the interior of São Paulo.

The event, held on the last day of campaigning before the vote, was led by presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro (PL), who started his agenda this Saturday with the motorbike.

Tarcísio is running for re-election to the São Paulo government. In 2022, he was elected governor of São Paulo after defeating Fernando Haddad (PT) in the second round.

Current governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans) arrived at Palácio dos Bandeirantes in 2023, after winning his first electoral contest. Former Minister of Infrastructure in the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government, he defeated Fernando Haddad (PT) in the second round of the 2022 election and is now running for re-election.

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Tarcísio built most of his professional career in the Armed Forces and in the federal public service before entering electoral politics. Graduated in military sciences from the Academia Militar das Agulhas Negras (Aman) and in civil engineering, he served as an Army officer and engineer and even joined a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission in Haiti.

After leaving his military career in 2008, Tarcísio worked at the National Department of Transport Infrastructure (Dnit), where he was executive director and general director, and at the Special Secretariat of the Investment Partnership Program (PPI). He worked during the governments of Dilma Rousseff (PT) and Michel Temer (MDB).

In December 2018, he was chosen by Jair Bolsonaro to head the Ministry of Infrastructure. He remained in the position until 2022, when he left the federal government to run for the São Paulo government. In the same year, he joined the Republicans and, in his first election, beat Haddad in the second round.

Tarcísio took over the government of São Paulo in January 2023. Throughout his term, he maintained the political alliance with Bolsonaro and expanded his national projection, at the same time that he began to command the most populous state in the country. In 2026, he will run for a second term at Palácio dos Bandeirantes.