Rocha proposes restrictions on switching political parties.
Senator Roberto Rocha (PSB-MA) presented a bill of his own authorship that will be included in the package of proposals announced by the President of the Senate, Renan Calheiros, for discussion of political reform; the parliamentarian suggests loss of mandate due to party disaffiliation without just cause; "We presented a proposal with the intention of closing this window and opening another, which allows for a much more democratic moment for holders of elective office to be judged by the people."
Maranhao 247 - Senator Roberto Rocha (PSB-MA) presented, on Wednesday (11), a bill of his own authorship that will be included in the package of proposals announced by the president of the Senate, Renan Calheiros (PMDB-AL), for discussion of political reform. The PSB parliamentarian suggests the loss of mandate due to party disaffiliation without just cause.
According to the proposal, an elected official may change their party affiliation without risking the loss of their mandate under three conditions: serious personal political discrimination; and a substantial change or repeated deviation from the party program.
A third condition would be when the party change occurs during the 30-day period preceding the deadline for party affiliation required by law to run for election in the year prior to the end of the term. For example, a senator elected in October 2014, with a term until January 2023, would have to serve almost the entire term in the party for which he was elected. Disaffiliation would be possible from September 2021 onwards, since the following elections would take place in October 2022.
According to the senator, the proposed change will close the loophole that allows a parliamentarian to leave a campaign, take office, and immediately change parties. Rocha states that, "instead of what happens today, where someone is elected and then does whatever they want, the person will do what they want to be elected or not. Then it will be the voter who will make the judgment."
"We presented a proposal with the intention of closing this window and opening another, which allows for a much more democratic moment for elected officials to be judged by the people," he added.
According to Roberto Rocha, the relentless "switching" of party affiliations by parliamentarians weakens political and party representation and distorts the concept of party loyalty. The senator pointed out that there are currently more than 40 parties awaiting authorization from the Electoral Court to join the 32 already in existence.
Rocha assures that, if his proposal is approved, it will decrease the "appetite" for the creation of new parties. "We are heading towards nearly 100 parties. I consider what is happening in Brazilian politics today a great excrescence. Considering the importance and urgency of this project, we request that the Speaker of the House bring it directly to the Plenary. This is a decision that will be up to the Board," he declared.
According to the proposal, if the holder does not meet any of the three requirements that constitute just cause for party disaffiliation, it is exclusively up to the interested political party to request the competent Electoral Court to decree the loss of mandate. The action must be filed within 15 (fifteen) days of the change in party affiliation.