Experts explain the advantages of governing with the majority

You don’t need to be a genius to know that governing with the majority guarantees smoother management. Greater ease in approving projects, defining budgets and less difficulty when it comes to negotiation. In Camaçari, a city in the Metropolitan Region of Salvador, the person who has the advantage in a possible mandate is councilor Flávio Matos (União Brasil), who is running in the second round against former mayor Luiz Caetano (PT).

On October 6, in the first round of municipal elections, Flávio’s base elected 14 of the 23 councilors who will form the City Council from January 2025 – five of which are from União Brasil. The former mayor, in turn, won nine seats in the Legislature, also with five from the same party.

“It is easier (with the majority) to approve the city hall’s proposals. It is even easier when defining and approving the budget. It is easier to approve the negotiation, which always exists because councilors normally represent local sectors of society, neighborhoods, groups, religious organizations, residents’ organizations”, explained political scientist Joviniano Neto, professor at the Federal University of Bahia (Ufba).

On the other hand, if elected, the PT member will need to work with greater intensity in negotiations and rely on popular pressure mechanisms. “The Caetano government would have to open up to incorporate demands from councilors in these neighborhoods. At the same time, a government that does not have a majority in the Chamber will make an effort to mobilize public opinion more”, analyzed the professor.

Caetano’s nine allies represent a third of the Chamber’s composition, which could create some difficulties for a possible Flávio government. This is because the PT’s supporters could form a sufficient number to block votes and even overturn vetoes. This type of strategy, says the political scientist, makes management difficult. “This will require permanent negotiation (of the possible administration of Flávio Matos)”, highlighted Joviniano Neto.

For lawyer Erica Teixeira, legal advisor at the Municipal Audit Court (TCM), having a strong opposition, regardless of the political side, is a positive point with regard to transparency about the mayor’s decisions.

“For public administration, in the sense of citizens, it is a very good thing because you have someone supervising, a group with greater political strength supervising the one that is working in public management. This necessarily requires that the mayor’s work be more transparent, more demanding”, he clarified.

In total, 12 of the 18 councilors who sought re-election were reappointed. They were: Dilson Magalhães Jr. (PP), Dr. Elias Natan (PSDB), Dentinho do Sindicato (PT), Dr. Samuka (PRD), Dudu do Povo (União Brasil), Herbinho (União Brasil), Ivandel Pires ( União Brasil), Jamelão (Cidadania), Jamesson (PL), Manoel Filho (PL), Niltinho (PRD) and Tagner Cerqueira (PT).

Fafá de Senhorinho (União Brasil), Jorge Curvelo (União Brasil), Dedel Reis (PP), Deni de Isqueiro (União Brasil), Júnior Borges (União Brasil) and Vavau (PSB) remained as substitutes.

Current mayor of Camaçari, Elinaldo Araújo (União Brasil) ends the last year of his administration, after commanding the city for two consecutive terms (2016-2020 and 2020-2024) with 18 councilors from the base in the Chamber.

Dudu do Povo (União Brasil)

Ivandel Pires (União Brasil)

Maurício Quality (União Brasil)

Luisão de Camaçari (Republicans)

Dentinho do Sindicato (PT)

Val Styles Salts (PSD)

*With guidance from editor Rodrigo Daniel Silva