One small step, a long way ahead.

The re-election of Senator Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG) to the position of President of the Federal Senate and National Congress, this Wednesday (1st), can be considered a victory for democracy against the far-right coup-mongering terrorism, represented by the candidacy of Senator Rogério Marinho (PL-RN). This is just one interpretation of the event. Another analysis refers to yet another important political defeat for former President Jair Bolsonaro, who has been accumulating failures since the first round of the presidential elections. 

Bolsonaro lost the first round of the 2022 presidential elections to then-candidate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who would go on to defeat him in the second round, which took place on November 30th. Even before his second electoral defeat to current president Lula, Bolsonaro began to be thwarted in several alleged attempts to carry out a coup d'état, with the aim of enthroning himself as a kind of absolute monarch of Brazil. It seems he lacked the necessary support from the Armed Forces. 

While he didn't lack military support – albeit tacit – he was overwhelmed with foolish initiatives. This is the case with the meeting with foreign ambassadors, who, perplexed, watched Bolsonaro's testimony in which he claimed that electronic voting machines are fraudulent and therefore the election results should not be respected. This, of course, was in the event of a defeat in his bid for re-election as the highest authority in the Republic. It was a shot that backfired, as this meeting consolidated his loss of international support. 

Extreme horde

Before Pacheco's triumph, there were resounding failures by the far-right, such as the attempted bombing at Brasília Airport (DF), which theoretically would have forced a Guarantee of Law and Order (GLO). The Bolsonaro-supporting coup-mongering terrorist acts of January 8th – the Day of Infamy – were the penultimate of these. What remained was the election for the presidency of the Senate, unbelievably "invaded" by a horde of extremist senators whose personal profiles highlight their extremely low political, moral, and professional qualifications. 

Now, the Senate vote result is being received with some relief by Democrats and progressives. It contributes to restoring concepts such as normality, tranquility, predictability, dialogue, and harmony in Brazilian society, implying an ideal environment for economic development, with increased business combined with social inclusion. However, Lula is not in a bed of roses and will face a gigantic challenge in getting his projects approved in a conservative-leaning legislature.

In any case, having the current president of the Senate is, at the very least, a breath of fresh air, without having to fight against the orchestration of further coup attempts or sabotage aimed at paralyzing and obstructing the Federal Government. It is preserving the Supreme Federal Court (STF) from opportunistic maneuvers aimed at, for example, removing Alexandre de Moraes and other ministers through impeachment proceedings. It is another significant step, certainly, but the road ahead is quite long and uncertain. May there be courage.