Rio Grande do Sul Governor Eduardo Leite (PSD-RS) said on Monday (24) that the attempt to destroy an electronic ankle bracelet made the preventive arrest of former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) justified, but he lamented the country’s “radical polarization” and said he hoped the 2026 discussion would revolve around projects.
“From a technical and legal point of view, the attempt to violate the ankle bracelet seems to justify arrest. Now, from the country’s institutional political point of view, I cannot help but feel sorry again that we are living in a moment like this, as a result of this tension of extremist polarization,” said Leite, upon arriving for a dinner promoted by the Foto group, in the capital, São Paulo.
According to him, while the climate of confrontation and “the attempt to destroy opposition political camps still exists, the country’s problems persist.” Light, who is seen as a potential presidential candidate next year, seeks to present himself as a center-right name that is not linked to any of the poles, whether Bolsonaro or President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who opposes him.
The Governor of Rio Grande do Sul stressed the need for unity to confront the problem of public security. According to him, neither Bolsonaro nor Lula had adequate strategies to deal with the issue, and “while the opposing political camps simply want to destroy each other,” the problems continue to disrupt the lives of Brazilians.
“The right, this most extreme right, led by Bolsonaro and Bolsonarista, has never worked with the logic of building a lighter, more prosperous state for those in charge. It has simply worked to try to destroy opponents,” Gaucho said.
He added, “Next year is an election year, and let it be a year for us to strive to build a different Brazil, and not just destroy those who think differently than us,” avoiding committing to his candidacy or supporting another name in the same field.
“I’ve long advocated building an alternative path to this polarization,” Light said. “There’s still a lot of things that are going to happen, right? A lot of water is going to pass under that bridge. There are names that qualify.”
When asked about the Governor of São Paulo, Tarcisio de Freitas (Republican), the Gaucho replied that he was a politician worthy of his respect, but called for the discussion of the nomination to be based not on the name, but on the project. “I understand that any candidate, no matter who it is, whether it is my name or any other name, like Tarcisio’s name, must seek alliance by always working on the country’s agenda first.”
In addition to Leite, another name mentioned as a possible presidential candidate in 2026 who participated in the event is the governor of Minas Gerais, Romeo Zema (Novo). Governors Tarcisio and Ronaldo Caedo (União Brasil-GO) were expected to attend the meeting, but were absent.
Tarcísio held a meeting with representatives of police associations and ended up canceling his participation. Kaido is hospitalized after undergoing heart surgery. The “Democracy Elites” event is held annually by Grupo Voto, which describes itself as a “business diplomacy and political dialogue company.” The mayor of the capital of São Paulo, Ricardo Nunes (MDB), was one of the honorees.