CPAC Brazil: Bolsonarism elects ‘spokesperson’ to diversify audience and Milei spares Lula

CPAC Brazil: Bolsonarism elects ‘spokesperson’ to diversify audience and Milei spares Lula


Deputy Nikolas Ferreira (PL-MG) gains importance in the Bolsonarist strategy and appears prominently at the right-wing event in Balneário Camboriú

A Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC Brasil) held in Balneário Camboriú (SC) over the weekend, clarified the Bolsonarist communication strategy to keep voters mobilized, even outside of power. The goal is to define themselves as spokespersons for different audiences and reach as many people as possible, as already happened in the demonstration on February 25 in Avenida Paulista.

Behind the scenes, a person close to Bolsonaro and Michelle confirmed State that the group thinks of communication in a segmented way to reach a greater number of sectors of society. There are also parliamentarians whose role is to ignite militancy and address issues dear to Bolsonarism, such as freedom of expression and criticism of the Supreme Federal Court (STF).

In this segmentation, the group’s leader, former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL), adopts a popular tone in his speeches, while former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro (PL) targets female voters with religious overtones. Another exponent of Bolsonaroism, governor Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicanos-SP), is responsible for the technical discourse in relation to the economy and infrastructure, listing the measures adopted by the Bolsonaro government in these areas.

Rounding out the “cast”, federal deputy Nikolas Ferreira (PL-MG) has a dual role: he addresses young people with a dynamic language typical of social media, while at the same time permeating his speeches with religious references. The parliamentarian’s father is a pastor in Belo Horizonte.

“The right must be patient, not passive, but active. And we must build ‘Bolsonaro’ in every sphere of society. Otherwise, we are leaving an empty space and this empty space will not remain empty. This is one of the characteristics of politics,” Nikolas said, in a mini-documentary screened during CPAC Brasil.

Strengthening the International Right

The event also aimed to strengthen ties with other elements of the international right. The main protagonist was the president of Argentina, Javier Milei, but politicians from Chile, El Salvador and the Netherlands also spoke. This action front is coordinated by Eduardo Bolsonaro (PL-SP), organizer of CPAC Brasil.

Milei was expected to level fresh criticism at President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), with whom he had exchanged barbs last week, but he made no reference to the PT member during his visit to Brazil. Instead, he turned his artillery generally against “socialist governments” in Latin America and said that Bolsonaro was the target of “judicial persecution.”

Bolsonaro has been charged by the federal police with embezzlement, money laundering and criminal conspiracy in the Saudi jewelry case, as revealed by State in March of last year. There was little comment on the topic at the event over the weekend. In his speech, the former president simply said that he “will not back down.”

When questioned by State After the event, he said he would only speak about the topic in a live hearing TVGlobe. Michelle Bolsonaro also disagreed and said it was necessary to ask who “kept the jewels”.

Nikolas Ferreira Gains Visibility and Opens Panel with Bolsonaro, Michelle and Tarcísio

Although he is only a federal deputy, like more than a dozen speakers, Nikolas Ferreira stood out at the conference. A likely candidate for the government of Minas Gerais in 2026, he was the one who opened the closing panel on the first day, while Bolsonaro, Michelle, Tarcísio and the governor of Santa Catarina, Jorginho Mello (PL-SC) were on stage. With a higher position in the political hierarchy than Nikolas, Senator Jorge Seif (PL-SC) participated in the panel, but did not have the right to speak.

An internal document from the event organization on the order and speaking time of each speaker shows the status of the Minas Gerais deputy among the Bolsonaristas. According to the program, Nikolas would have the right to speak for 25 minutes, less than the 40 minutes scheduled for Jair Bolsonaro and the president of Argentina, Javier Milei, who closed the event on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

For comparison, Tarcísio and Jorginho could speak for a maximum of 20 minutes each. Other federal deputies, such as Marcos Pollon (PL-MS) and Mário Frias (PL-SP), were entitled to 10 minutes each. The times were not respected exactly due to delays and reorganizations during the two days.

Furthermore, according to an employee of the bookstore located there, Nikolas’ book “The Christian and Politics” was the best-selling book of the event.

Municipal elections become the main topic and the press is harassed

In general, the CPAC Brasil conferences barely addressed the issue of morals, dear to Bolsonarism, with topics such as abortion, drugs and the fight against feminism, but there was talk of an alleged judicial dictatorship established in the country, as well as complaints about censorship and freedom of expression, as well as requests for amnesty for those arrested for participating in the January 8 coup.

The focus, however, was on the municipal elections. The deputies and Bolsonaro leaders who spoke consistently asked the pre-candidate councilors and mayors present in the audience to raise their hands and stressed that a good electoral result was essential to support a presidential candidacy for Bolsonaro in 2026.

Although Bolsonaro was not eligible, during the two-day event he was identified as the right-wing pre-candidate and some deputies, such as Gil Diniz of São Paulo (PL-SP), criticized governors who seek to become valid successors to the former president.

Tarcísio de Freitas, the most popular name to succeed the former chief executive, has been effusively praised by Bolsonaro, something that has become standard in recent months. The governor of São Paulo says he does not want to run for president in 2026 and prefers reelection.

Also spreading among the public opinion are politicians who lost their voice with the end of the Bolsonaro government, such as former ministers Onyx Lorenzoni (PL-RS), without a mandate, and Osmar Terra (MDB-RS), currently a federal deputy.

There was no emphasis on the pre-candidacy of the son of former president “04?”, Jair Renan (PL-SC), pre-candidate for municipal councilor in Balneário Camboriú, the city hosting the event. and PL Locals members are betting that he will be a vote-gatherer with the potential to increase the party’s seat from the current 5 councilors to 7 – the municipal legislature has 19 parliamentarians in total.

Uncomfortable giving interviews, Jair Renan said Statealmost monosyllabic, who was excited about the pre-candidacy, but then entered a reserved area and did not answer the question about what his plans for the city were.

The press has been harassed on two occasions. On Saturday the report of State was insulted by Bolsonaro supporters after he asked Michelle Bolsonaro about the federal police accusation. A group of people followed the journalist and one of them pushed him with his shoulder. On Sunday, a journalist from CNN Brazil She had to be escorted from the venue after being harassed by dozens of people.

“The leadership of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) vehemently repudiates any form of aggression against press professionals. CPAC is a democratic space and its principle is to guarantee freedom of expression for all,” the event’s organizers said in a statement sent to the TV channel.

CPAC Brasil took place at the Expocentro in Balneário Camboriú, where about 3,500 chairs were installed. The organization announced that tickets, sold for R$ 250, were sold out. Those who wanted to watch it online paid R$ 21.90, but the link did not work and there was a free official broadcast on YouTube.

There were organizational problems, especially on Saturday. The system for accreditation and reading tickets in the morning did not work and the audience entered the auditorium even without showing proof of having purchased a ticket. O State A man who managed to enter the building without passing through a metal detector was also captured. The problems were resolved during the afternoon and Sunday.

The organization also took the opportunity to sell souvenirs of Bolsonaro, such as Bolsonaro wine, launched by Eduardo Bolsonaro, frames with photographs of the former president and a flower tiara, trademark of federal deputy Júlia Zanatta (PL-SC) adopted by several women that distributed through CPAC Brazil. The most expensive version of the propeller was sold for R$ 100.

Last month, the congresswoman sued influencer Felipe Neto for associating her with Nazism because of the tiara. “I am very proud to be from Santa Catarina and I don’t care if they talk. There are many tiaras here. The sale of the bulkiest tiaras has ended. There will be many tiaras throughout Brazil,” she said during her speech at the event.

Source: Terra

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