PT nets bets on Janones and waves to evangelicals to stop Bolsonaro

PT will bet on the performance of federal lawmaker André Janones (Avante) on social networks and in a series of talks with evangelical leaders to bolster former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s campaign. The party considers the recent actions of President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) to have been effective in improving its performance in the polls.

Bolsonaro grew up in the constituency that received R$600 Emergency Aid in the Bolsonarista campaign.

Given this scenario, Lula’s campaign bases Janones’ support and participation in discussions on social networks as essential. With nearly 12 million followers, Janones is one of the most capitalized politicians in this audience. He also has experience navigating networks, especially with the poorest and most Facebook-used voters.

Janones, who will be more involved in Lula’s campaign, has the potential to generate participation for the benefit of the former president.

With Emergency Aid increased only during the election period, Bolsonaro attacks Lula on low-income voters. The PT must fight a battle to show that Bolsonaro’s measure is temporary and that next year the economic team will accept aid of no more than R$400 until December.

Another challenge for Lula’s campaign is stopping Bolsonaro’s advances among low-income evangelicals. According to PT, research shows that it is precisely this audience that Lula has lost the most fans lately.

The support of the evangelical André Janones is also seen as essential for Lula to fight Bolsonaro in front of these audiences. The former president was also advised to meet with evangelical leaders in this segment of the electorate and fight the Bolsonarista attack, especially by the First Lady.

Lula’s campaign understands Bolsonaro’s current growth as a wake-up call. Future research should capture the greater impact of taking Emergency Aid for Bolsonaro’s electoral benefit. In other words, PT thinks there is still room for Bolsonaro to grow.

But the PT campaign believes that a battle during free-election hours will fuel Bolsonaro’s rejection and keep the current president at a level that makes re-election impossible. In other words, the game will still be played, Lula is the leader in the polls, and the time will come when a useful voting call will outweigh Bolsonaro.