MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Lula's Supreme Court nominee defends limits on judicial power in Brazilian Senate hearing

The vote takes on political significance five months before the October general elections, in which Lula will seek re-election

Jorge Messias, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's nominee to fill the open seat at the Federal Supreme Court (STF), defended on Wednesday before the Senate the need to limit the power of judges, in a bid to expand support for his candidacy in what is shaping up to be a closely contested vote. The Solicitor General of the Union appeared before the Constitution and Justice Committee, where he made explicit overtures toward the Bolsonarist right-wing opposition, particularly critical of the country's top court's recent rulings.

“Rules define a judge's prerogatives, both in terms of what he can do and what he cannot do,” Messias said in his presentation, in which he expressed “extreme concern” over so-called judicial activism. The candidate argued for a “self-restrained exercise” of the court's powers and a “non-expansionist behaviour” that preserves “harmony” among the branches of government, in response to mounting criticism of the Supreme Court's intervention in legislative matters. He further stressed that justices must be “a model of integrity,” an implicit reference to the credibility crisis facing the court over the association of several of its members with the Banco Máster case, considered the largest ongoing corruption scandal in Brazil. The bank's owner, Daniel Vorcaro, under investigation for multimillion-dollar fraud, hired the law firm of one justice's wife, while one of his funds invested in a hotel owned by another judge. “The public perception that justices resist self-criticism tends to put pressure on the institution,” Messias said.

The Solicitor General also highlighted his evangelical faith, one of his main political assets in a Senate with a strong presence of pastors and religiously oriented legislators. He stated that his “spiritual values” will accompany him in the exercise of the office if confirmed. On abortion — prohibited under Brazilian law except in exceptional cases — he recalled that the Constitution enshrines the inviolability of the right to life and that principles such as this “guide” the interpretation of rules by judges. The Supreme Court has been discussing the legalisation of abortion for years and currently has two votes in favour of decriminalisation in an open case.

Following the committee hearing, the nomination must secure at least 41 votes in the full Senate, in a vote for which no date has yet been set. Messias, 45, a career attorney with the Solicitor General's Office and former deputy chief of staff, is the third candidate Lula has proposed to the Supreme Court since the start of his third term in 2023, and the one to face the greatest resistance. His nomination, announced on November 20, 2025, was formally transmitted to the Senate only on April 1, after months of tensions with Senate President Davi Alcolumbre, who had championed the candidacy of Senator Rodrigo Pacheco.

The vote takes on political significance five months before the October general elections, in which Lula will seek re-election. The far right, led by sectors close to former President Jair Bolsonaro, is trying to block the appointment in order to inflict a symbolic blow on the government, while the ruling coalition is mobilising last-minute support: Social Development Minister Wellington Dias will temporarily resume his Senate seat to take part in the vote. Messias would replace former Justice Luís Roberto Barroso, who retired from the court last year.