Voting elects, crime unselects: Tarcísio praises the Electoral Court.

 "Quando notum est, et quid ille tibi et quid illi tute dederis” (when you know well what he gave you and what you gave him) Suetonius

Barely after the election ended, the current Mayor of São Paulo, Ricardo Nunes, in an interview with Estadão, said that he would make every effort to ensure that his party, the MDB, would stop supporting President Lula and instead support the candidacy of Tarcísio, from the Republicanos party, or Bolsonaro, from the PL party, for the Presidency of the Republic in two years. Nunes said he was hurt by a video in which women, including the President's wife, Janja, asked for votes for Guilherme Boulos and Marta Suplicy, from the PSOL/PT party, in favor of life and against violence, citing the public fact of a police report filed regarding domestic violence allegedly perpetrated against the wife of the Mayor-elect, an incident whose existence was denied by Nunes himself:I will, obviously, defend, as I discussed with Melo, the re-elected mayor of Porto Alegre, that we move forward with those who supported us. It makes no sense, here in São Paulo, for me to defend support for the re-election of President Lula or the PT, because they acted very forcefully against my candidacy. It's natural and obvious that I will defend those who supported me. Those who supported me were Tarcísio and President Bolsonaro. In return, it's obvious that I will do this, because I have always been a person who, throughout my life, has been consistent.. "

Nunes had repeatedly stated throughout his campaign that he owed Tarcísio de Freitas, the current Governor of São Paulo, perpetual gratitude in recognition of the support he believed was crucial to his electoral victory. In his victory speech, he affirmed:I thank the supreme leader, without whom this victory would not have been possible, my friend, who lent me a hand, Governor Tarcísio de Freitas.. "

In fact, aside from so many declarations and expressions of unwavering support for the MDB candidate, the Governor was an extremely loyal campaign manager. On election day, while the voting process was still underway, in a press conference with his political protégé by his side, he raised suspicions about the PSOL/PT candidate, claiming that there had been police interception of “Hello"(sic) of a criminal faction in São Paulo, through which orders were given to certain people, in certain regions, to vote for a particular candidate. A journalist then asked the Governor - who had Nunes' campaign sticker, with his voting number clearly visible on his shirt - who that candidate was. Tarcísio promptly replied:Boules. "

 The interview was being given in his capacity as Governor of the State, as reporters wanted to know about the public security situation (a central theme of current political and popular concern) on election day – with the polls open and voting underway. No one asked him about the situation of his candidate. According to the Governor, then, the following had been carried out…It's a major intelligence operation; we've been exchanging information with the Regional Electoral Court so that appropriate measures can be taken. Regarding the peaceful nature of the elections currently underway, there's a very large police mobilization. . "  

The journalist wanted to know about the situation in the Baixada Santista region, where a candidate had alleged that her opponent was receiving support from... PCC (Primeiro Comando da Capital, an organ of organized crime)  But then, surprisingly and spontaneously, that is, without being asked, he insisted on stating, without presenting evidence, but guaranteeing that he had received the information from intelligence (sic), in his capacity as Chief Executive, and who, as such, was in constant contact with the Regional Electoral Court:This also happened here with Ricardo. They told us to vote for the other guy."The subject was what was happening in Santos and Guarujá, and therefore the press continued to explore the events that occurred in those municipalities, realizing, however, soon after, that the Governor of the State had made a statement about the Capital:What happened here in the capital that you mentioned? In relation to the PCC? Note that the question refers to the Governor's spontaneous statement. Tarcísio de Freitas then concludes what he had insinuated: "TThere was a warning. There was interception of conversations and instructions emanating from prisons by a criminal faction, directing certain people in certain areas to vote in certain communities. There was this intelligence operation, there was this interception, but it had no influence whatsoever on this.…”The press interrupts and asks the Governor to confirm what he had said:But which candidate were they advising people to vote for? Which candidate were they advising people to vote for? In São Paulo? "The Governor of the State confirms what he had indicated as the topic for the conversation and the accusation he had made, without hesitation: "Boules. "

 This carefully calculated, albeit irresponsible, loyalty should cost the Governor and the elected Mayor and Deputy Mayor dearly: the loss of their mandates and ineligibility for future elections.

The Superior Electoral Court's website has a glossary, whose purpose is to disseminate "Information about the Electoral Court that can raise awareness among voters and future voters about the importance of voting and contribute to making them citizens with effective participation in the political life of the country."  

 It is stated there, based on a reference from legal doctrine, that the abuse of political power "This occurs in situations where the holder of power [...] uses their position to act in a way that influences the voter, to the detriment of the freedom of vote. It is thus characterized as an act of authority exercised to the detriment of the vote."

 Election day is the culmination of the electoral process. All the efforts of the electoral administrative authorities are concentrated on this day to ensure the process is carried out legitimately, since tension and conflict between candidates reach their peak on this day. It is a delicate moment, subject to abuses and deviations from what the law dictates for the legality of the entire process. The most decisive cards of the election may have been kept in reserve, allowing for a turnaround on that day, through the audacity of knowing the right moment to reveal or say something.

That is why, for some time now, electoral law has surrounded the voting date with a series of safeguards, to prevent candidates and supporters from disrupting everything that has occurred correctly during the process through improper actions on election day. Consider, for example, the possibility of employing public agents to prevent voters from moving to certain locations, the possibility of distributing electoral propaganda to capture undecided voters, and the prohibition of offering transportation, meals, and other means of persuasion, thus hindering the voter's freedom of choice.

On that day, the State Governor, wearing a sticker of the candidate seeking re-election on his shirt, using information accessible only to a public authority, stated before the press, with a clear interest in widespread dissemination, that the opposing candidate to his preferred candidate was supported by organized crime. He used privileged information, which he had access to as Governor, to try to convince voters to vote for his candidate and not the candidate he had just accused, without any proof whatsoever.  

Let's return to the definition from the TSE Electoral Glossary; The person in power uses their position to influence voters, to the detriment of their freedom to vote..

It doesn't take much reflection to conclude that, in abstract terms, the Governor's action falls under this hypothesis of abuse of political power.

 In fact, it's a typical case: those in power believe they can do anything, especially to maintain that power. This "anything goes" attitude is abuse:On October 27, 2024, during the second round of municipal elections, Governor Tarcísio de Freitas, in a press interview, stated that members of the criminal faction PCC were instructing voters in communities to vote for Guilherme Boulos, the PSOL candidate for mayor of São Paulo. Tarcísio's statement that he "received a message" from the PCC asking for votes for Boulos was given in a press conference at the Miguel Cervantes school in the southern zone of São Paulo, where the governor was voting, accompanied by Ricardo Nunes. At the time, the governor did not present any evidence to support his statement."

 Very well, what does the Law say now, and not just the important Glossary of Electoral Justice?

Complementary Law 64/1990, in its article 22, addresses the abuse of political power, stating that it is the responsibility of the Electoral Court to be informed and take action regarding abuse of political power, or, as the text of the law expresses, “abuse of authority":"A political party, coalition, candidate, or the Electoral Public Prosecutor's Office may file a complaint with the Electoral Court, directly to the General or Regional Inspector, reporting facts and indicating evidence, indications, and circumstances, and request the opening of a judicial investigation to investigate the misuse, diversion, or abuse of economic power or authority, or the improper use of vehicles or means of social communication, for the benefit of a candidate or political party.. "

The law itself states the penalty to be applied to an authority who abused their power to benefit their preferred candidate, for whom they worked during the electoral process:If the complaint is deemed admissible, even after the proclamation of the elected officials, the Court will declare the ineligibility of the represented party and of all those who contributed to the act, imposing on them the sanction of ineligibility for elections to be held in the 8 (eight) years subsequent to the election in which it occurred, in addition to the revocation of the registration or diploma of the candidate directly benefited by the interference of economic power or by the misuse or abuse of authority or the media..” (Item XIV of the same article 22 of Complementary Law 64/1990)

LC 64/1990 is the Ineligibility Law (see the meaning and importance of ineligibility in these two articles: "Ineligibility and liability" is "Ineligibility is Sacred") which states that those convicted of abusing political power are ineligible from the moment of their conviction: “Those who are convicted, in a final and unappealable decision or a decision rendered by a collegiate judicial body, are ineligible for any office from the time of conviction until the expiration of 8 (eight) years after the completion of the sentence, for the crimes of abuse of authority, in cases where there is a conviction resulting in the loss of office or disqualification from holding public office.” (article 1, item I, subparagraph e, no. 5)

A case is currently underway in the Electoral Court to investigate these facts and apply the corresponding sanction, should they be found to be true. The first instance of this Court acquitted the Governor, Mayor, and Vice-Mayor this past March.

Just days after the acquittal was announced, Tarcísio de Freitas praised the Electoral Court. This may not be merely an ambiguous behavior on the part of a politician who, just days before, had once again attended an event with the former President of the Republic, his political godfather, where the Brazilian justice system was criticized and attempts were made to persuade people of the need to grant amnesty to those accused of attempting a coup d'état.   

It is important to remember that it is extremely doubtful, under penalty of liability, that a public authority, with the responsibility of holding the office of State Governor, could participate in a demonstration alongside someone who has already been judged ineligible twice by the Electoral Court, in addition to already being, at the time of the event, indicted by the Federal Police and denounced by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office.

Today, the former President is a defendant, and with regard to the Governor, an appeal against the first-instance decision of the Electoral Court is underway, with the Regional Electoral Court of São Paulo and, eventually, the Superior Electoral Court still to issue their rulings.  

The challenge for citizens lies in demanding, firmly and uncompromisingly, that consistency guide the Justice system towards fulfilling its role as guardian of the Constitution, Human Rights, Democracy, and the Rule of Law, definitively removing the nefarious Bolsonaro regime from politics and condemning it to electoral and criminal penalties.

Bolsonarism is an extremely dangerous culture; due to leniency, it has become a doctrine, it has thrived as a practice, and wherever it has gone, it has left only weeds and destruction. Consider, for example, what happened even to the Judiciary (see the succession of events narrated regarding the Brazilian Justice system, under the influence of Bolsonarism, by journalist Frederico Vasconcelos in his column in...). Folhajus(April 1, 2025).

A serious act such as the one committed by the current Governor of São Paulo, in an attack against the parity of arms and the fairness of the electoral process, cannot go unpunished.

"Create brains and grab your eyes”