

Currently released so far... 12404 / 251,287
Browse latest releases
2010/12/01
2010/12/02
2010/12/03
2010/12/04
2010/12/05
2010/12/06
2010/12/07
2010/12/08
2010/12/09
2010/12/10
2010/12/11
2010/12/12
2010/12/13
2010/12/14
2010/12/15
2010/12/16
2010/12/17
2010/12/18
2010/12/19
2010/12/20
2010/12/21
2010/12/22
2010/12/23
2010/12/24
2010/12/25
2010/12/26
2010/12/27
2010/12/28
2010/12/29
2010/12/30
2011/01/01
2011/01/02
2011/01/04
2011/01/05
2011/01/07
2011/01/09
2011/01/10
2011/01/11
2011/01/12
2011/01/13
2011/01/14
2011/01/15
2011/01/16
2011/01/17
2011/01/18
2011/01/19
2011/01/20
2011/01/21
2011/01/22
2011/01/23
2011/01/24
2011/01/25
2011/01/26
2011/01/27
2011/01/28
2011/01/29
2011/01/30
2011/01/31
2011/02/01
2011/02/02
2011/02/03
2011/02/04
2011/02/05
2011/02/06
2011/02/07
2011/02/08
2011/02/09
2011/02/10
2011/02/11
2011/02/12
2011/02/13
2011/02/14
2011/02/15
2011/02/16
2011/02/17
2011/02/18
2011/02/19
2011/02/20
2011/02/21
2011/02/22
2011/02/23
2011/02/24
2011/02/25
2011/02/26
2011/02/27
2011/02/28
2011/03/01
2011/03/02
2011/03/03
2011/03/04
2011/03/05
2011/03/06
2011/03/07
2011/03/08
2011/03/09
2011/03/10
2011/03/11
2011/03/13
2011/03/14
2011/03/15
2011/03/16
2011/03/17
2011/03/18
2011/03/19
2011/03/20
2011/03/21
2011/03/22
2011/03/23
2011/03/24
2011/03/25
2011/03/26
2011/03/27
2011/03/28
2011/03/29
2011/03/30
2011/03/31
2011/04/01
2011/04/02
2011/04/03
2011/04/04
2011/04/05
2011/04/06
2011/04/07
2011/04/08
2011/04/09
2011/04/10
2011/04/11
2011/04/12
2011/04/13
2011/04/14
2011/04/15
2011/04/16
2011/04/17
2011/04/18
2011/04/19
2011/04/20
2011/04/21
2011/04/22
2011/04/23
2011/04/24
2011/04/25
2011/04/26
2011/04/27
2011/04/28
2011/04/29
2011/04/30
Browse by creation date
Browse by origin
Embassy Athens
Embassy Asuncion
Embassy Astana
Embassy Asmara
Embassy Ashgabat
Embassy Apia
Embassy Ankara
Embassy Amman
Embassy Algiers
Embassy Addis Ababa
Embassy Accra
Embassy Abuja
Embassy Abu Dhabi
Embassy Abidjan
Consulate Auckland
Consulate Amsterdam
Consulate Adana
American Institute Taiwan, Taipei
Embassy Bujumbura
Embassy Buenos Aires
Embassy Budapest
Embassy Bucharest
Embassy Brussels
Embassy Bridgetown
Embassy Bratislava
Embassy Brasilia
Embassy Bogota
Embassy Bishkek
Embassy Bern
Embassy Berlin
Embassy Belmopan
Embassy Belgrade
Embassy Beirut
Embassy Beijing
Embassy Banjul
Embassy Bangkok
Embassy Bandar Seri Begawan
Embassy Bamako
Embassy Baku
Embassy Baghdad
Consulate Barcelona
Embassy Copenhagen
Embassy Conakry
Embassy Colombo
Embassy Chisinau
Embassy Caracas
Embassy Canberra
Embassy Cairo
Consulate Curacao
Consulate Ciudad Juarez
Consulate Chennai
Consulate Casablanca
Consulate Cape Town
Consulate Calgary
Embassy Dushanbe
Embassy Dublin
Embassy Doha
Embassy Djibouti
Embassy Dili
Embassy Dhaka
Embassy Dar Es Salaam
Embassy Damascus
Embassy Dakar
Consulate Dubai
Embassy Helsinki
Embassy Harare
Embassy Hanoi
Consulate Ho Chi Minh City
Consulate Hermosillo
Consulate Hamilton
Consulate Hamburg
Consulate Halifax
Embassy Kyiv
Embassy Kuwait
Embassy Kuala Lumpur
Embassy Kinshasa
Embassy Kingston
Embassy Kigali
Embassy Khartoum
Embassy Kathmandu
Embassy Kampala
Embassy Kabul
Consulate Kolkata
Embassy Luxembourg
Embassy Luanda
Embassy London
Embassy Ljubljana
Embassy Lisbon
Embassy Lima
Embassy Lilongwe
Embassy La Paz
Consulate Lahore
Consulate Lagos
Mission USOSCE
Mission USNATO
Mission UNESCO
Embassy Muscat
Embassy Moscow
Embassy Montevideo
Embassy Monrovia
Embassy Minsk
Embassy Mexico
Embassy Mbabane
Embassy Maputo
Embassy Manila
Embassy Manama
Embassy Managua
Embassy Malabo
Embassy Madrid
Consulate Munich
Consulate Mumbai
Consulate Montreal
Consulate Monterrey
Consulate Milan
Consulate Melbourne
Embassy Nicosia
Embassy New Delhi
Embassy Ndjamena
Embassy Nassau
Embassy Nairobi
Consulate Naples
Consulate Naha
Embassy Pristina
Embassy Pretoria
Embassy Prague
Embassy Port Of Spain
Embassy Port Louis
Embassy Port Au Prince
Embassy Phnom Penh
Embassy Paris
Embassy Paramaribo
Embassy Panama
Consulate Peshawar
REO Basrah
Embassy Rome
Embassy Riyadh
Embassy Riga
Embassy Reykjavik
Embassy Rangoon
Embassy Rabat
Consulate Rio De Janeiro
Consulate Recife
Secretary of State
Embassy Suva
Embassy Stockholm
Embassy Sofia
Embassy Skopje
Embassy Singapore
Embassy Seoul
Embassy Sarajevo
Embassy Santo Domingo
Embassy Santiago
Embassy Sanaa
Embassy San Salvador
Embassy San Jose
Consulate Strasbourg
Consulate St Petersburg
Consulate Shenyang
Consulate Shanghai
Consulate Sao Paulo
Embassy Tunis
Embassy Tripoli
Embassy Tokyo
Embassy The Hague
Embassy Tel Aviv
Embassy Tehran
Embassy Tegucigalpa
Embassy Tbilisi
Embassy Tashkent
Embassy Tallinn
Consulate Toronto
Consulate Tijuana
USUN New York
USEU Brussels
US Office Almaty
US Mission Geneva
US Interests Section Havana
US Delegation, Secretary
UNVIE
Embassy Ulaanbaatar
Embassy Vilnius
Embassy Vienna
Embassy Vatican
Embassy Valletta
Consulate Vladivostok
Consulate Vancouver
Browse by tag
ASEC
AE
AF
AM
AR
AJ
AU
AORC
AG
AEMR
AMGT
APER
AGMT
AL
AFIN
AO
AMED
ADCO
AS
ABUD
ABLD
ASUP
ASECKFRDCVISKIRFPHUMSMIGEG
APECO
AID
AND
AMBASSADOR
AN
ARM
AY
AODE
AMG
ASCH
AMCHAMS
ARF
APCS
APEC
ASEAN
AGAO
ANET
ADPM
ACOA
ACABQ
AORL
AFFAIRS
ATRN
ACS
AFSI
AFSN
ADANA
ASIG
AA
AX
AUC
AC
AECL
AADP
AGRICULTURE
AMEX
ACAO
ACBAQ
AQ
AORG
ADM
AINF
AIT
ASEX
AGR
AROC
ATFN
AFGHANISTAN
AFU
AER
ALOW
AZ
AVERY
BA
BY
BU
BR
BE
BL
BO
BK
BM
BILAT
BH
BEXP
BF
BTIO
BC
BBSR
BMGT
BTIU
BG
BWC
BB
BD
BX
BP
BRUSSELS
BN
BIDEN
BT
CW
CH
CF
CD
CV
CVIS
CM
CE
CA
CJAN
CLINTON
CIA
CU
CASC
CI
CO
CACM
CDB
CN
CMGT
CS
CG
CBW
CIS
CR
CONDOLEEZZA
CPAS
CAN
CWC
CY
COUNTER
CDG
CL
CT
CIC
CIDA
CSW
CHR
CB
CODEL
COUNTERTERRORISM
CTR
COM
CICTE
CFED
CJUS
CKGR
CBSA
CEUDA
CARSON
CONS
CITEL
CLMT
CROS
CITT
CAC
CVR
CDC
CAPC
COPUOS
CBC
CBE
CARICOM
COE
COUNTRY
CLEARANCE
CACS
CTM
CNARC
ECON
EFIN
ETRD
EUN
EFIS
EG
ETTC
EZ
EPET
EAID
EAGR
ENRG
ECUN
EU
ELAB
ECPS
EAIR
EINV
ELTN
EWWT
EIND
EMIN
EI
ECIN
ENVR
ELECTIONS
EINVEFIN
EN
ES
ER
EC
EUC
EINT
EINVETC
ENGR
ET
EK
ENIV
ETRDEINVECINPGOVCS
ECONOMY
EAP
EFTA
EUR
EUMEM
EXIM
ERD
ENERG
EUREM
ESA
ERNG
EXTERNAL
EPA
EINVECONSENVCSJA
ECONOMICS
ELN
EINN
EFINECONCS
ENNP
EEPET
ETRDEINVTINTCS
ENVI
ETRO
ESENV
ECINECONCS
ECONOMIC
EAIDS
EDU
ETRA
ETRN
EFIM
EIAR
ETRC
EAIG
EXBS
EURN
ECIP
EREL
ECA
ENGY
ECONCS
ECONEFIN
ETC
ETRDECONWTOCS
EUNCH
EINDETRD
IR
IZ
IS
IAEA
INRB
IRAJ
IQ
IN
IT
IMO
INTERPOL
ICAO
IO
IC
ITALY
ITALIAN
IRAQI
ICTY
ID
IPR
IWC
ILC
INTELSAT
IL
IBRD
IMF
IA
IRC
ICRC
ILO
ITU
ITRA
IV
IDA
IAHRC
ICJ
ISRAELI
IRS
INMARSAT
ISRAEL
ISLAMISTS
INDO
IZPREL
ITPHUM
ITPGOV
ITF
IBET
IEFIN
INR
IACI
INTERNAL
IDP
IGAD
IEA
ICTR
IIP
INRA
INRO
IF
KJUS
KSCA
KNNP
KU
KCOR
KCRM
KDEM
KTFN
KHLS
KPAL
KWBG
KACT
KGHG
KPAO
KTIA
KIRF
KWMN
KS
KG
KZ
KN
KMDR
KISL
KSPR
KHIV
KPRP
KAWK
KR
KUNR
KDRG
KCIP
KGCC
KTIP
KSUM
KPKO
KVIR
KAWC
KPIN
KGIC
KRAD
KIPR
KOLY
KCFE
KMCA
KE
KV
KICC
KNPP
KBCT
KSEP
KFRD
KFLU
KVPR
KOCI
KBIO
KSTH
KMPI
KCRS
KOMC
KTBT
KPLS
KIRC
KREL
KFRDKIRFCVISCMGTKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG
KFLO
KBTS
KSTC
KTDB
KFSC
KX
KFTFN
KNEI
KIDE
KREC
KMRS
KICA
KPAONZ
KCGC
KSAF
KRGY
KCMR
KRVC
KVRP
KSEO
KCOM
KAID
KTEX
KNUC
KNAR
KNUP
KNNPMNUC
KLIG
KFRDCVISCMGTCASCKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG
KCRCM
KHDP
KGIT
KNSD
KOMS
KWMM
KPAI
KHSA
KTLA
KO
KMFO
KRCM
KCSY
KSAC
KTRD
KPWR
KID
KWNM
KRIM
KPOA
KCHG
KOM
KSCI
KFIN
KMOC
KESS
KWAC
KMIG
KSEC
KIFR
KDEMAF
KPRV
KBTR
KERG
KTER
KDDG
KPAK
KRFD
KHUM
KDEV
KCFC
KWWMN
KWMNCS
KJUST
MARR
MOPS
MU
MTCRE
MNUC
MY
MASS
MCAP
MOPPS
MAR
MPOS
MO
ML
MR
MASC
MX
MD
MP
MA
MTRE
MIL
MCC
MZ
MK
MDC
MRCRE
MAPS
MV
MI
MEPN
MAPP
MEETINGS
MAS
MTS
MLS
MILI
MTCR
MG
MC
MARAD
MIK
MILITARY
MEDIA
MEPI
MUCN
MEPP
MT
MERCOSUR
MW
MASSMNUC
MQADHAFI
NZ
NATO
NG
NI
NO
NATIONAL
NU
NPT
NIPP
NL
NPG
NS
NA
NGO
NP
NSG
NDP
NAFTA
NR
NC
NH
NE
NSF
NPA
NK
NSSP
NRR
NATOPREL
NSC
NT
NW
NORAD
NEW
NV
NSFO
NAR
NASA
NZUS
OTRA
OVIP
OPRC
OPDC
OSCE
OAS
ODIP
OIIP
OFDP
OVP
OREP
OFFICIALS
OSAC
OEXC
OPCW
OIE
OIC
OFDA
OSCI
OPIC
OBSP
OECD
ON
OCII
OHUM
OES
OCS
OMIG
OPAD
OTR
PGOV
PREL
PHUM
PINR
PTER
PSOE
PINS
PARM
PK
PBTS
PEPR
PM
POLITICAL
PARTIES
PREF
PBIO
PROP
PA
PSI
PINT
PO
PKFK
PL
PAK
PE
POLITICS
PINL
POL
PHSA
PU
PF
POV
PFOR
PHALANAGE
PARTY
PARMS
PRGOV
PNAT
POLINT
PRAM
PMAR
PG
PAO
PROG
PRELP
PPA
PCUL
PSEPC
PSA
PREO
PAHO
PGIV
PREFA
PALESTINIAN
PAIGH
POSTS
PTBS
PGOVLO
PORG
PGOVE
PLN
PINF
PAS
PUNE
POLICY
PDEM
PDOV
PCI
PGOVSMIGKCRMKWMNPHUMCVISKFRDCA
PBT
PHUMPGOV
PMIL
PNG
PP
PS
PHUH
PECON
POGOV
PY
PHUMPREL
PHUS
PRL
PGOC
PNR
PGGV
PROV
PTERE
PGOF
PHUMBA
PEL
RS
RU
RW
REGION
RP
RICE
ROBERT
RSP
RUPREL
RM
RO
RCMP
RSO
RELATIONS
REACTION
REPORT
RIGHTS
ROOD
RF
RFE
RIGHTSPOLMIL
SP
SA
SY
SF
SYR
SENV
SCUL
SOCI
SNAR
SO
SU
SG
STEINBERG
SHUM
SW
SMIG
SR
SZ
SIPRS
SI
SAARC
SPCE
SARS
SN
SYRIA
SANC
SL
SCRS
SC
SENVKGHG
SAN
SNARCS
SHI
SWE
SNARIZ
SIPDIS
SEN
SNARN
SPCVIS
SEVN
SSA
SH
SOFA
SK
ST
TPHY
TU
TRGY
TI
TX
TS
TW
TC
TFIN
TD
TSPA
TH
TT
TIP
TBIO
TSPL
TZ
TERRORISM
TRSY
TN
THPY
TINT
TF
TL
TV
TK
TO
TP
TURKEY
TNGD
TBID
TAGS
TR
UP
US
UNSC
UK
UZ
UE
UNESCO
UV
UNGA
UN
UNMIK
UNO
UY
UAE
UNEP
UG
UNHCR
UNHRC
USUN
UNAUS
USTR
USNC
USOAS
UNCHR
UNCSD
UNDP
USEU
USPS
UNDC
UNDESCO
UNCHC
UNFICYP
UNC
UNODC
UNPUOS
UNCND
UNICEF
UNCHS
UNVIE
USAID
UNIDROIT
Browse by classification
Community resources
courage is contagious
Viewing cable 06SAOPAULO400, PSDB OFFICIAL EYES UPCOMING ELECTIONS
If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs
Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:
- The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
- The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
- The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.
Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #06SAOPAULO400.
Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin |
---|---|---|---|---|
06SAOPAULO400 | 2006-04-13 10:10 | 2011-03-05 00:12 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Consulate Sao Paulo |
VZCZCXRO2250
PP RUEHRG
DE RUEHSO #0400/01 1031016
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 131016Z APR 06
FM AMCONSUL SAO PAULO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4849
INFO RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 5992
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES 2155
RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION 2501
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 0242
RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO 1908
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ 2709
RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO 1650
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO 6984
RUEHRG/AMCONSUL RECIFE 2834
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RHMFISS/CDR USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC 2365
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 SAO PAULO 000400
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
NSC FOR CRONIN
STATE PASS USTR FOR SULLIVAN/LEZNY
DEPT OF TREASURY OASIA, DAS LEE AND FPARODI
USDOC FOR 4332/ITA/MAC/WH/OLAC/SHUPKA
USDOC ALSO FOR 3134/USFCS/OIO/EOLSON/DDEVITO/DANDERSON
STATE PASS EXIMBANK
STATE PASS OPIC FOR DMORONESE, NRIVERA, CMERVENNE DOL FOR ILAB MMITTELHAUSER SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PINR BR
SUBJECT: PSDB OFFICIAL EYES UPCOMING ELECTIONS
REF: (A) SAO PAULO 355;
(B) BRASILIA 640 AND PREVIOUS;
(C) SAO PAULO 316;
(D) SAO PAULO 206;
(E) SAO PAULO 102
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY.
------- SUMMARY -------
¶1. (U) Poloff and Political Assistant met April 7 with Sao Paulo Municipal Secretary of Government Aloysio Nunes Ferreira to discuss the local and national political scene following Mayor Jose Serra's resignation to run for Governor of Sao Paulo state (ref A). Nunes, who is close to Serra, was sanguine about the prospects of his Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) to capture both the Presidency and the Governor's Palace. End Summary.
------------------------- "KASSAB ASKED ME TO STAY" -------------------------
¶2. (U) On April 7, Poloff and Political Assistant visited Aloysio Nunes Ferreira in his City Hall office. In the midst of large-scale resignations of both municipal and state officials to comply with the requirement that executive branch officials resign six months before any election in which they plan to seek government office, Nunes chose to stay on as Sao Paulo Municipal Secretary of Government, an important position responsible for coordinating the work of the other Secretariats. He indicated that new Mayor Gilberto Kassab had asked him to remain to help ensure continuity in city government after the resignation of Mayor Serra and a number of Secretaries. Kassab (see ref E), a member of the Liberal Front SIPDIS Party (PFL) who was Vice-Mayor and will serve as Mayor through December 2008, has pledged to continue Serra's policies.
¶3. (U) By remaining in City Hall, the 61-year-old Nunes forfeited his eligibility to run for re-election to the federal Chamber of Deputies. (Note: Re-elected to Congress in 2002, Nunes took leave from the Chamber to serve in Serra's administration. End Note.) He noted that he had been elected a deputy five times, twice (1982 and 1986) to the Sao Paulo state Legislative Assembly and three times to the federal Chamber (1995, 1999, and 2003), and that was enough. He planned to help administer the city government, liaise with the Serra gubernatorial campaign, and generally make himself useful to both Serra and Kassab.
----------------- PSDB-PFL ALLIANCE -----------------
¶4. (U) Nunes confirmed that at the Sao Paulo state level the PSDB-PFL alliance remains strong, and that although the campaign has not yet settled on a name, he was almost certain that Serra's running mate would be from the PFL. (Note: The front-runner for the Lieutenant Governor nomination appears to be Guilherme Afif Domingos, who ran for President in 1989 and is currently the President of the Sao Paulo Associao Comercial (Chamber of Commerce). End Note.) Likewise, former Governor Alckmin would choose a "pefelista" to run for Vice President on his ticket, most likely someone from the Northeast to give the ticket regional balance and help Alckmin in a critical region where he is virtually unknown; the two names most commonly mentioned are Pernambuco Senator Jose Jorge and Rio Grande do Norte Senator Jose Agripino Maia. Some influential members of the PFL are reportedly pushing for the nomination of party President Jorge Bornhausen, but the candidacy of the Senator from the southern state of Santa Catarina would not make
SAO PAULO 00000400 002 OF 003
sense geographically.
----------------- SERRA AND ALCKMIN -----------------
¶5. (SBU) Poloff asked if Nunes had been surprised by the way Alckmin had contended for and ultimately won the PSDB presidential nomination (refs C-D). After a long pause, Nunes replied, "I was...He put Serra in a very difficult position." Nunes went on to explain that it was impossible for Serra to resign as Mayor to launch his presidential candidacy if he was fighting with Alckmin. Since Alckmin refused to step aside or accept a deal to end his own candidacy, Serra had no choice but to stay put. However, Alckmin's own resignation had opened up the gubernatorial option for Serra. Nunes was confident that Alckmin could overcome his 20-point deficit in the polls and run a strong race against President Lula, and very likely win. Poll results released April 7, meanwhile, showed that Serra's lead over possible rivals for the governorship had only widened.
--------------- THE PMDB FACTOR ---------------
¶6. (SBU) Nunes, who joined the PSDB in 1997 after many years in the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB), thought the wild card in the Governor's race would be his former political mentor, state PMDB President and former Governor (1986-90) Orestes Quercia. Lula's Workers' Party (PT) would almost certainly run former Sao Paulo Mayor Marta Suplicy; her rival for the PT nomination, Senator Aloysio Mercadante, is very well known, state- and nation-wide, but he doesn't have a strong personal or political identity like Suplicy does and, for that matter Serra. (Nunes acknowledged that Serra's "strong identity" brought with it high negative ratings that hindered him in his unsuccessful quest for the presidential nomination.) And he was confident that Serra could defeat Suplicy handily, as he did in the 2004 Mayoral race. (Comment: When Charg visited Sao Paulo this past January and met with Marta Suplicy, she asserted that if a new Mayoral race were held then, she would beat Serra. However, post is unaware of any empirical evidence to support such a claim. Furthermore, while Nunes's prediction of a Suplicy primary victory is logical, it should be noted that President Lula favors his Senatorial ally Mercadante, and is reportedly trying to persuade Marta to withdraw. End Comment.)
¶7. (SBU) But Quercia, in Nunes's view, will wait until the last minute to decide what to do. He has let it be known that he doesn't really want to be Governor again, though he was leading in the polls until Serra entered the race. He would prefer to look after his many business interests. There has been much speculation among political pundits that Quercia is seeking an alliance with the PT at the state level, one which might include his candidacy for a Senate seat from Sao Paulo. However, all possible deals involving that Senate seat - and there are many under discussion -- run up against the fact that the incumbent, Eduardo Suplicy of the PT (Marta's ex-husband), apparently wants to run for re-election and is considered tough to beat. So Quercia is playing for time. He has reportedly also put out feelers to the PSDB, so far without any effect. 8. At the national level, Nunes said, the PMDB is unlikely to play a role in the presidential election. Rio de Janeiro ex-governor Anthony Garotinho, who won the party's "informal" primary (ref B), wants to run, but none of the party's leaders want him to be their standard-bearer, though they are trying hard to avoid alienating his solid bloc of evangelical supporters. Quercia recently proposed
SAO PAULO 00000400 003 OF 003
former President Itamar Franco as the PMDB presidential candidate, but this suggestion is impossible to take seriously. In addition, the Supreme Federal Tribunal (STF) recently ruled (ref B) that the Constitutional amendment passed by Congress eliminating the "verticalization" rule cannot take effect until the 2010 elections. With "verticalization" still in place, requiring that electoral alliances at the national level be replicated in races for governor and federal deputy, the PMDB will most likely avoid entangling national alliances in order to maintain maximum flexibility in the 15-18 gubernatorial races it plans to contest, as well as the innumerable Congressional races important to a party that wants to maintain the largest blocs in both the Chamber and the Senate.
---------------------- BIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION ----------------------
¶9. (SBU) Aloysio Nunes Ferreira has enjoyed an impressively varied and often eventful political career. A militant member of the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB) in his youth, he went into exile in France in 1968, returning in 1979 when the military dictatorship declared an amnesty for political offenses. Having joined the Brazilian Democratic Movement (MDB), the legal opposition to the dictatorship, in 1966, he participated in the 1982 founding of the PMDB as the successor organization to the MDB and worked for the restoration of democracy. After two terms as a Sao Paulo state legislator - during which time he was identified as a "quercista," a close ally and strong supporter of Orestes Quercia - he was elected Lieutenant Governor in 1990 and served in that position in the administration of PMDB Governor Luis Antonio Fleury Filho. Following a term (1995-99) in the federal Chamber, during which time he switched to the PSDB, Nunes was re-elected a Federal Deputy, but departed eight months later to serve (1999-2001) as Minister of State and Chief of the Secretariat-General of President Fernando Henrique Cardoso and subsequently (2001-02) as Minister of Justice. He has served in party leadership positions for both the PMDB and PSDB. Nunes holds degrees in political science and political economy from the University of Paris system and has taught at the University of Besancon (France) and the University of Sao Paulo. He is also a lawyer who has served as a Sao Paulo state public prosecutor. End Biographic Note.
¶10. (U) This cable was coordinated/cleared with Embassy Brasilia.
WOLFE