Sidônio Palmeira, head of the Secretariat of Social Communication (Secom), plans to stay in office until the end of Lula's term and appoint his partner for the re-election campaign. Political scientists warn that this does not eliminate the risk of using public resources for electoral purposes. The change aims to separate the president from the candidate but raises concerns about conflicts of interest.
Sidônio Palmeira took over the Secretariat of Social Communication (Secom) in January 2025, initially intending to stay in the role for one year and step down in early 2026 to fully dedicate himself to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's re-election project, including the pre-campaign period. However, sources close to the minister indicate that plans have changed: Palmeira is set to remain on the second floor of the Palácio do Planalto until the end of the current term and appoint his partner, Raul Rabelo, as the marketer in charge of the PT's presidential campaign. This choice, still pending confirmation, aims to formally separate President Lula from candidate Lula, but experts consulted by VEJA warn that the risk of conflict of interest remains even without Palmeira directly leading the campaign's communication. “One cannot use the promotion of the State's achievements to promote political candidacies or personal gains. While Sidônio is in the Secretariat of Communication, there is a risk of seeing this happen. It is a situation where Lula, the presidential candidate, could be favored for re-election using the State's structure,” states political scientist Valdir Pucci. He adds: “Having the federal government's structure in hand during a presidential campaign is very powerful. In previous campaigns without symbiosis, there were even clashes between the marketer and the government communication. Now there won't be that fight. But this could bring problems to the Brazilian State.” Political marketing consultant Leandro Grôppo notes that it is common to draw a strategic line in government communication that extends to the campaign, but warns: “It is a very thin line between the public information interest and the electoral interest, so that the public machine is not used to promote the re-election candidate.” Political scientist Alberto Aggio from Unesp assesses that Lula will control the potential conflict “up to the limit where it becomes a problem for him” and points out that Brazil handles the issue with less rigor than Europe, where investigations and lawsuits are more common.
