Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva resumed talks with the National Congress on Monday, November 2, to speed up priority bills one week after his election victory.
The administration of the Workers' Party leader is trying to pass its legislative agenda before a newly elected Congress takes office with stronger opposition caucuses. Brazil's bicameral legislature in Brasilia comprises the Chamber of Deputies and the Federal Senate.
Starting on Monday, the government deployed its political negotiators to advance its priority measures. The first task for presidential aides at the Planalto Palace, the official seat of the executive branch, and allied congressional leaders is to pass the Public Security Constitutional Amendment Proposal in the Senate.
Public security amendment vote in the Senate
Senate President Davi Alcolumbre, a member of the Brazil Union party from the state of Amapa, scheduled the public security measure for Tuesday, November 3. With a special timetable already approved, the federal administration is trying to pass the proposal through two rounds of voting on that same day.
In Brazil, a constitutional amendment proposal requires two rounds of voting in each chamber of Congress. The security measure stalled over an opposition effort to add a provision lowering the age of criminal responsibility, which Brazil's constitution sets at 18.
That dispute forced leaders to pull the amendment from the upper house voting schedule on October 15, on the eve of the election.
Supreme Federal Court nomination
Government negotiators are also advising Lula to submit a nominee this year for the Supreme Federal Court seat vacated by Luis Roberto Barroso. Presidential appointees to Brazil's highest court require confirmation by the Senate, and the president's inner circle has called for a safe nomination.
After winning re-election, Lula signaled to close allies that he wanted to press ahead with nominating Attorney General Jorge Messias for the seat left by Barroso. As head of the Attorney General's Office, Messias represents the federal government in legal matters.
According to government negotiators, however, Messias has still not won broad acceptance in the Federal Senate. Allied lawmakers and Planalto Palace officials are instead asking for a candidate backed by Alcolumbre and the chamber's leaders.
Their favored option is Rodrigo Pacheco, a former Senate president who now serves as a minister on the Federal Court of Accounts, the body that oversees federal public spending.
Artificial intelligence rules and the 2027 budget
The federal administration will also push the current Congress to pass competition rules for major technology companies and an artificial intelligence regulatory framework. The artificial intelligence bill has already cleared the Senate and now needs approval from the Chamber of Deputies.
Lula also needs lawmakers to pass the 2027 Annual Budget Law Bill. The text has already been sent to Congress, but it requires adjustments following the package of voter benefits that the president promised during the election campaign.
