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The anticipation of the retirement of Minister Celso de Mello, precipitated the race to replace the current Dean of the Federal Supreme Court (STF). Members of the Planalto Palace already admit that President Jair Bolsonaro is evaluating names to succeed Mello and that the Senate, with the support of the President of the Chamber, Davi Alcolumbre (DEM-AP), can make a working group to appreciate the possible nominated. until December.
Two names start at the front due to the dispute over Celso de Mello’s vacancy: the current Minister of Justice and Public Security, André Mendonça, and the Minister of the General Secretariat of the Presidency, Jorge Oliveira. The Minister of the Superior Labor Court (TST), Ives Gandra Filho, runs outside.
This Friday (25), Celso de Mello announced that he will leave the STF on October 13. Initially, his retirement was scheduled for November 1, when he turns 75 years old and he must retire. The political milieu was surprised by the anticipation of Mello’s retirement and now the Planalto Palace wants to take advantage of this window of opportunity to elect the current dean’s replacement as soon as possible.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic and the need to vote on the federal budget next year, it was thought that the replacement of Celso de Mello would only be approved by the Senate in early 2021. However, with this change of scenery, members of the government leadership in the Senate and members of the Planalto Palace admit that there is a concrete possibility that the replacement of Mello will be endorsed by the Chamber until the first half of December.
“There is no power vacuum. And my feeling is that the Senate has all the conditions to complete the replacement process for the next minister before Christmas, “said the vice president of the government, Senator Chico Rodrigues (DEM-RR). “I also believe that it is possible to support the name of Celso de Mello’s replacement this year,” agreed another vice president of the government, Senator Izalci Lucas (PSDB-DF).
Understand the replacement process for the new STF minister
The process of replacing a minister of the Federal Supreme Court begins with the appointment made by the President of the Republic. Then, this indication must be endorsed by a hearing held by the Senate Constitution and Justice Commission (CCJ), made up of 27 members, and then by the plenary. The name of the next minister must be approved by both the CCJ and the plenary by simple majority.
In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, senators believe that the future set for Celso de Mello’s vacancy is something similar to what happened this week, when the names of 32 officials – mostly ambassadors – were approved by the Senate after the adoption of new security protocols, such as the installation of alcohol gel totems and a drive-thru voting system, for example. Among the authorities was, for example, the Minister of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) Maria Thereza de Assis Moura, who was approved for the position of corregedora of the National Council of Justice (CNJ).
A People’s Gazette He discovered that, after confirming that Celso de Mello would anticipate his retirement, the president of the Senate assured President Bolsonaro that he would do everything possible to speed up the process of replacing the dean.
The conservative profile of the future minister is prerequisite number 1 for Bolsonaro
Among the possible ministers in the STF, two stand out as favorites according to sources from the Planalto Palace: the ministers André Mendonça and Jorge Oliveira. Another name mentioned with good possibilities is that of Minister Ives Gandra Martins Filho, former president of the TST. The Minister of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) João Otávio de Noronha and the federal judge of Lava Jato Marcelo Bretas run outside and with little possibilities, according to palatial sources.
Bolsonaro has already made it clear that he intends to initiate a conservative turn in the Supreme Court with the replacement of Celso de Mello. The idea is to seek a balance of progressive and conservative forces in the Supreme Court. Today, all ministers are seen as progressive and resistant to agendas that are more in line with conservative thinking, such as a ban on abortion, for example.
President Jair Bolsonaro’s project is to allow the Supreme Court to have a greater plurality of thought. Privately, a palace counselor stated that “when the president speaks of appointing a ‘terribly evangelical’ minister, it is not literally. But it shows a concern for a line of thought that does not exist today in the STF ”.
In addition to being conservative, the president wants to put on the Supreme Court a Christian who considers himself trustworthy and who supports the fight against corruption. In this sense, the president does not necessarily have the intention of appointing a “lavajatista” in the Supreme Court. The Planalto Palace warns that between a conservative and non-Lavajatista judge and another progressive and Lavajatista, the President of the Republic will elect the former. Another concern of the president is his internal activism. The president will elect a minister who is also popular with his political base.
So far, the name of André Mendonça is the one that stands out with the greatest possibilities for the position of Celso de Mello. Evangelical, Mendonça is seen as a man of confidence of the president, but weighs against the resistance of the Bolsonarista militancy, which sees him as an unreliable man, after he made public signs to the current Supreme Court.
Of the possible new ministers, Jorge Oliveira is the closest to the president. Despite being a friend of Bolsonaro, his negative factors are the resistance of the militancy to “legal ignorance” for a position of this magnitude. Behind the scenes, he has sought to convince the president that his duties in the Legal Affairs Bureau (SAJ) are sufficient to take over the STF. Two ministers have already passed through SAJ: Dias Toffoli and Gilmar Mendes.
Ives Gandra Filho is highly rated in “betting exchanges”
The third in this race is Minister Ives Gandra Martins Filho. His name has been circulating strongly in recent weeks, but the fact that he has little connection to Bolsonaro is seen as a negative factor. Conservative and Christian, Ives Gandra Filho took a vow of poverty and, according to members of the government, could be seen as a symbol of this conservative turn that Bolsonaro intended.
Another fan name is Federal Judge William Douglas. He has the support of evangelical leaders in the House who are also seeking to sign a conservative name for the Supreme Court. Members of the Evangelical Bank believe that Douglas’ nomination would also be an important asset in ratifying the president’s support for his parliamentary base.
