Alagoas on a different path: Judson Cabral as governor.
No name has been put forward from the left so far. And here I affirm that state representative Judson Cabral (PT) is the best name for this 2014 election in the state.
The electoral climate for next year is heating up every day. Nationally, even with some pieces still finding their place, the chessboard is beginning to take shape, and with it, the heat of the contest is increasing. PSDB insists, at least officially, on Aécio Neves. PSB is trying to increase its value and, if possible, launch Eduardo Campos, Marina Silva, who defends Feliciano and is trying to organize her party in time for the election, and so on.
In Alagoas, some pieces have already been placed on the 2014 electoral chessboard, but without defining their place on the board. Teotônio Vilela (PSDB) is expected to be a candidate for the Senate, but he hasn't officially announced it, nor has the Alagoas PSDB. Senators Benedito de Lira (PP) and Fernando Collor (PTB) are clearly eager to participate in next year's election, even though the former president hasn't yet openly stated what he'll be running for – governor or senator. In Benedito de Lira's case, if he runs in 2014, it will be for governor of Alagoas. And then there's Nonô (DEM), the current vice-governor, and Renan Calheiros (PMDB) in this mix of pieces.
From the left, no name has been put forward so far. And here I affirm that state representative Judson Cabral (PT) is the best name for this race in 2014. His performance as a parliamentarian, since his time as a city councilman in Maceió, is notably recognized by broad sectors of Alagoas society. Furthermore, his candidacy would be the antithesis of what we have in the Palácio República dos Palmares (seat of the Alagoas government) and a progressive option among the names being considered to succeed Vilela.
Alagoas has the worst social indicators in the country. Our economy is monopolized by the sugar and ethanol sector, and we are totally dependent on the federal government's income distribution policies. More people are killed here than in wars all over the planet. Alagoas' public schools are not functioning properly – we still have schools in the 2012 school year that haven't even started classes yet! – and the Workers' Party candidate could be the unifying factor for progressive sectors in the state. Alagoas needs this.
In addition to the factors already mentioned, Judson is fully capable of initiating a genuine dialogue with organized civil society, both rural and urban, in the search for solutions to the significant social problems of Alagoas. He has an ideological commitment to these segments. And it is these segments that can promote the changes that the land of the Caetés so desperately needs.
While various names are being put forward, even if they don't explicitly admit anything due to their sensitivity and/or cunning, the left, and especially the PT (being the largest left-wing party), needs to position itself as an alternative for political power in Alagoas, putting the state on the same path of development with income distribution that Brazil has been on since 2003 with Lula's first government.