Defeat for Lula da Silva: the Brazilian Senate rejected his candidate for the Supreme Court

The Upper House registered 42 votes against the official candidate and 34 in favor. Messias He is the first Supreme Court nominee rejected by the Senate in more than 100 years, according to the Brazilian press.

This setback represents a severe defeat for Lula and a victory for the opposition, embodied by the senator and presidential candidate, Flavio Bolsonaro.

“This is a sign that democracy can breathe again”declared Flavio Bolsonaro, in the midst of opposition legislators who celebrated the result of the vote shouting “Brazil, Brazil.”

This is the first time since 1994 that the Upper House has demonstrated against the name of a candidate to occupy a seat in the highest Court of the country.

After the rejection, the message containing Messias’ nomination was archived, and President Lula will have to send a new name to fill the vacancy left by Luis Roberto Barroso in the Supreme Court.

Messias is the third appointment to the Supreme Court by the Lula government during this term. Before him, Cristiano Zanin and Flávio Dino were appointed to the Court.

Previously, the Senate Constitution and Justice Commission (CCJ) approved Messias’ nomination by 16 votes in favor and 11 against. The full Senate still had to vote and approve the nomination.

During his confirmation hearing before the CCJ (Commission on Constitution, Justice and Citizenship), Messias reinforced his opposition to abortion and criticized individual decisions of the STF (Federal Supreme Court) that, according to him, diminish the institutional dimension of the Supreme Court.

Jorge Rodrigo Araújo Messias, originally from Pernambuco, is the current Attorney General of Brazil. He has been part of the government’s high command since the beginning of Lula’s third term in 2023.

In the academic field, Messias has a degree in Law from the Recife Law School, belonging to the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE). In addition, he has a master’s degree and a doctorate from the University of Brasilia (UnB).

Messias, a public official since 2007, held strategic positions in the Executive Branch. He was Deputy Director of Legal Affairs in the Presidency of the Republic and Secretary of Regulation and Supervision of Higher Education in the Ministry of Education.

He also served as legal advisor to the Ministries of Education and Science, Technology and Innovation, as well as lawyer to the Central Bank and the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES).

He joined the Attorney General’s Office as a National Treasury Attorneya position responsible for collecting tax debts that taxpayers have with the Union. In 2022, Messias was part of President-elect Lula’s transition team.

In December of that year, he was announced as president of the AGU and assumed office in January 2023.