Caiado aims for the presidency, but needs to save the DEM party.
Elected senator with over 1 million votes and the main opposition figure in Congress at the beginning of this year, Ronaldo Caiado has revived his long-held desire to be president of the Republic; his more than 20 years as a federal deputy have shaped his aggressive discourse and earned him numerous enemies along the way; Caiado now also needs to contend with allies; the senator's main challenge is to prevent the demise of the DEM party; the party is dwindling and a merger with the PTB is possible; Caiado is against it and will fight back; an ally warns what Caiado will do to those who want the merger: 'he will blow those people up'.
Goiás 247 - Elected senator with over 1 million votes, Ronaldo Caiado's political ambitions are high: the Palácio das Esmeraldas (Governor's Palace) or the Palácio do Planalto (Presidential Palace). His first three months in office in 2015 indicate that the Goiás state representative continues to employ an aggressive discourse and stands out as the main opponent of the federal government, causing jealousy and unease within Aécio Neves' PSDB party.
Report on Veja magazine website He states that Caiado has revived his old dream of running for president of the Republic. And he recalls that he failed miserably in 1989, when he campaigned riding a white horse, as a pure representative of the then Rural Democratic Union.
Caiado's main challenge in paving the way for a presidential candidacy is maintaining his party, the DEM. The party has been losing strength in recent years and was shaken in 2012 by the Demóstenes-Cachoeira scandal. Caiado likes to fight and will have to contend with allies who advocate merging the DEM with the PTB.
Veja magazine interviewed former congressman Abelardo Lupion, who revealed that his friend Caiado will fight to the last minute against those who want to sell off the DEM party. "He's going to blow these people up," Lupion warned. Caiado's divisive profile and history of fighting with allies weigh against him. "He doesn't give up on a position unless he's convinced he's wrong, which isn't easy," summarized his fellow party member Rodrigo Maia (DEM-RJ).
Veja magazine also interviewed Vice-Governor José Eliton (PP), who was an ally of Caiado and is now an adversary of the senator. Eliton left the DEM party, sided with Governor Marconi Perillo (PSDB), and currently doesn't shy away from a fight when it comes to confronting Caiado. The vice-governor emphasizes the loss of strength of the DEM party and says that the senator is isolating himself.
"He's in a process of isolation and has been dwindling over time. His vision is much more of a personal nature," says Eliton.