Flávio Bolsonaro ramps up presidential campaign with focus on STF and strategic alliances

Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the PL candidate for the Presidency of the Republic, is intensifying his campaign activities through strategic alliances and sharp criticisms of the judiciary. On Tuesday, July 11, Bolsonaro met with approximately 20 candidates for the Senate in Brasília. During this meeting, he expressed his willingness to participate in debates with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, stating that he would be wherever Lula is. He also questioned the candidates if they supported the impeachment of Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, to which they responded in the affirmative. Bolsonaro accused Justice Moraes of acting as a political articulator for President Lula, citing a recent meeting between the president and Senate President Davi Alcolumbre at the justice's home.

As part of his electoral strategy, Flávio Bolsonaro is scheduled to record campaign videos with former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro, who is running for the Senate in the Federal District. According to center-leaning reports, the collaboration aims to reduce Bolsonaro's rejection among female voters and stabilize his support among evangelicals, which has shown recent declines in polling. Additionally, Bolsonaro has selected Deputy Alfredo Gaspar as his running mate. Center-right reports highlight that Gaspar, a former prosecutor, will be used to lead a discourse on corruption, specifically leveraging a CPMI report regarding INSS fraud to target people close to President Lula, including his son, Fábio Luís Lula da Silva.

Looking ahead to the official start of the campaign on August 16, Flávio Bolsonaro plans to hold his first major event at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, a site associated with previous pro-Bolsonaro demonstrations. President Lula will open his campaign at the 1º de Maio Municipal Stadium in São Bernardo do Campo. While center-right coverage emphasizes the symbolic nature of these locations and the specific anti-corruption targets of the PL ticket, center-left coverage focuses more on Bolsonaro's calls for the impeachment of Supreme Court justices and his attacks on the judiciary.