Federal deputy Aécio Neves, national president of the PSDB party, is expected to announce this Friday (28) whether he will run for the Senate in Minas Gerais. The decision would reverse what he said in early August, when he stated he would stay out of the 2026 election, ending a 40-year streak of consecutive candidacies and mandates. The information comes from the Painel column of Folha de S.Paulo.
The path was opened by the PDT party. According to O Globo, the party said this Thursday (27) that it will give up its Senate candidacy in Minas to make room for Aécio on the ticket of gubernatorial candidate Alexandre Kalil (PDT), a former mayor of Belo Horizonte. The withdrawal is by Marcelo Heringer, until then the party's Senate nominee and brother of the PDT's Minas Gerais chairman, deputy Mário Heringer. The renunciation was formalized on Wednesday (26).
The loophole in electoral law
The Superior Electoral Court's deadline for candidate registration ended on August 15. The law, however, allows parties and coalitions to replace candidates who withdraw up to 20 days before the election, O Globo reports. For the swap to be valid, Heringer must file a renunciation request with the Minas Gerais Regional Electoral Court, which will review and approve it. Because the PSDB forms a federation with Cidadania and is allied to Kalil's PDT, the substitution can happen within the same ticket.
In a joint statement, the PSDB-Cidadania federation and the PDT said they had received in recent days "appeals from party members, mayors, city councilors, deputies, activists and leaders from Minas" asking Aécio to reconsider and accept running again for a Senate seat representing the state.
"This movement reflects a legitimate concern for the future of Minas. Aécio, hear this call. Minas needs you in the Senate," the statement says.
According to Diego Amorim's column at PlatôBR, Aécio has already told PSDB leaders that he accepts entering the race. What remains is a definitive conversation with Kalil, who has said the PSDB veteran would be "very welcome." The column found that more than 150 mayors signed a manifesto asking the deputy to reconsider his electoral retirement. Pressure grew amid uncertainties in the Minas political landscape, including the back-and-forth of senator Cleitinho Azevedo (Republicanos) in the race for governor.
In the July Genial/Quaest poll, Aécio had 16% of voting intentions for the Senate, in a statistical tie with the leader, Marília Campos (PT), who had 18%, according to PlatôBR. At the state level, Cidadania, federated with the PSDB nationally, announced support for the reelection of governor Mateus Simões (PSD), according to O Globo.
The next step is Aécio's announcement, expected this Friday. After that, the swap depends on Heringer filing his renunciation with the state electoral court and on the court's approval, within the substitution window that runs until 20 days before the first round.