Kassab's tractor, PSD runs over centrist parties.
The new legend impresses as a pole of attraction; with the exception of left-wing groups, all others have been affected by its strength; the issue is not ideological, but one of the ability to maintain and elevate politicians to power; who wouldn't want that?
Evam Sena_247, in Brasília – The PSD closed the last day of affiliations for those who want to contest the 2012 municipal elections with at least 47 federal deputies, two senators, five vice-governors and two governors, dozens of state deputies, 600 mayors and thousands of councilors.
The new party steamrolled not only the DEM, the party of origin of the president, the mayor of São Paulo, Gilberto Kassab, but also parties in the base, such as PP, PMDB and PTB. Some even believe that the greatest damage will be done to the PSDB, and that the PSDB will wither away even before the Democrats.
The number of members of the new party may increase, since the deadline for changing parties without being considered party disloyalty ends on the 28th of this month. The goal is to reach 55 or 60 federal deputies.
In absolute numbers, the party that lost the most to the PSD was the DEM, from which 19 deputies may migrate, losing its title as the fourth largest party in the Chamber. The second was the PP, which is expected to lose six deputies. The PPS was also affected, with four fewer; PMDB, PMN, and PR, three each.
The PSDB not only lost three seats in the Chamber of Deputies, but also its position as the third largest party in the Chamber. The new party's offensive against PSDB members at the federal level began after its approval by the TSE (Superior Electoral Court), with the defection of Manoel Salviano (CE), Pinto Itamaraty (MA), and Carlos Brandão (MA).
The new members joining the PSD in São Paulo reveal the extent of the damage done to the PSDB. The PSDB is already weakened, not only by the wave of accusations of selling parliamentary amendments affecting the state government, but also by the internal strife intensified by the iron fist of Governor Geraldo Alckmin (PSDB). Former Governor José Serra and Senator Aloysio Nunes (PSDB) have been ignored by the current governor.
Kassab won the São Paulo mayoral election as Serra's running mate, who left the position to run for governor of São Paulo in 2006. In the 2008 municipal elections, Serra supported Kassab against Alckmin, who was also running, bringing the internal rift among the PSDB members in São Paulo to its peak. The dispute, which extended to the elections for the state and municipal party directorates this year, led to a mass exodus of PSDB council members to the PSD.
In São Paulo, the PSD won over the state's vice-governor, Domingos Afif (formerly of DEM), six federal deputies, and seven city councilors. The new party becomes the second largest bloc in the City Council, alongside PSDB. And yesterday, 247 revealed the biggest "coup" in the electoral race for the São Paulo City Hall: the affiliation of former Central Bank president Henrique Meirelles (formerly of PMDB) to Kassab's party. Meirelles enters the race perhaps with the most well-known name.
In Minas Gerais, the second stronghold of the PSDB party, the PSD won six federal deputies and 10 state deputies. In the Legislative Assembly, Kassab's party will be the second largest bloc, behind only the PSDB and PT, and emerges as a major force in the political landscape.
The 2012 elections, however, will be the big test for the new party, which will struggle to maintain the strength gained from new members. If the predicted migration of 500 mayors is confirmed, the PSD will be the fifth largest party in terms of the number of mayoralties it holds.
Check out the states with federal representatives from the PSD party:
Alagoas - João Lyra (former PTB)
Amazonas - Silas Câmara (former PSC), Carlos Souza (former PP)
Bahia - Fernando Torres (former DEM), José Nunes (former DEM), Paulo Magalhães (former DEM), José Carlos Araújo (former PDT) and Otto Alencar (former PCdoB)
Ceará - Manoel Salviano (former PSDB member)
Goiás - Vilmar Rocha (former DEM), Armando Vergílio (former PMDB), Heuler Cruvinel (former DEM), Thiago Peixoto (former PMDB)
Maranhão – Nice Lobão (former DEM), Pinto Itamaraty (former PSDB), Carlos Brandão (former PSDB)
Mato Grosso - Eliene Lima (former PP), Homero Pereira (former PR), Roberto Dorner (former PP)
Minas Gerais - Geraldo Thadeu (former PHS), Alexandre Silveira (former PPS), Walter Tosta (former PMN), Marcos Montes (former DEM), Diego Andrade (former PR)
Paraná - Eduardo Sciarra (former DEM), Reinhold Stephanes (former PMDB)
Piauí - Hugo Napoleão (former DEM), Julio Cesar (former DEM)
Rio de Janeiro - Arolde de Oliveira (former DEM), Felipe Bounier (former PHS), Sérgio Zveiter (former PDT) and Paulo Cesar (former PR)
Rio Grande do Norte - Fábio Faria (former PMN)
Rio Grande do Sul - Danrlei de Deus (former PTB)
Rondônia - Moreira Mendes (former PPS)
Roraima - Raul Lima (former PP)
Santa Catarina - Paulo Bornhausen (former DEM), João Rodrigues (former DEM), Onofre Agostini (former DEM)
São Paulo - Walter Ioshi (former DEM), Eleuses Paiva (former DEM), Junje Abe (former DEM), Guilherme Mussi (former PV), Guilherme Campos (former DEM), and Marcelo Aguiar (former PSC)
Tocantins - Irajá Abreu (former DEM), César Halum (former DEM)