#more important than having an erika hilton in the presidency as people usually dream here

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Bolsonarist Agenda Advances in Congress under Lula more than under Bolsonaro

Various factors drive cultural projects, such as rules on abortion and drugs

The so-called "cultural agenda" of Bolsonarism, which includes issues such as abortion and drugs, has been advancing more in this first half of Lula's government (PT) than in Jair Bolsonaro's (PL) four years.

If from 2019 to 2022 topics like school without party and the so-called Statute of the Unborn stalled, now Congress is making great strides to criminalize drug use and, at least in the House, to equate the penalties for homicide with those for abortion committed after 22 weeks of pregnancy.

A set of factors, including the composition of the Legislature and reactions to the STF (Supreme Federal Court), explains the paradox.

The composition of Congress under Bolsonaro and Lula is similar, with a majority of centrist and center-right parliamentarians. Both the left and Bolsonarism control about a quarter of the seats in the House and Senate.

The difference is that in the 2022 elections, the contingent of parliamentarians more aligned with the former president gained momentum: five former ministers were elected to the Senate, and the PL secured almost 100 deputies. A kind of initial push in the shift observed in Congress came from the Senate.

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