Lula bets on sovereignty as Flávio Bolsonaro targets Moraes and Cury seeks room on September 7

Brazil’s September 7 celebrations will serve as three different political stages for presidential candidates a month before the first-round vote. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will attend the civic-military parade in Brasília, Flávio Bolsonaro will turn a São Paulo rally toward the crisis surrounding the Supreme Federal Court, and Augusto Cury will seek to broaden his campaign’s reach in Rio de Janeiro.

Lula’s event on the Esplanade of Ministries is being organized as an institutional ceremony without party symbols, reflecting the restrictions imposed by electoral law. The parade is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. and will highlight themes already used by the government and campaign, including national sovereignty, action against femicide and the 2027 Women’s World Cup.

Allies of the president say the ceremony should adopt a more moderate tone than in previous years. They want to avoid directly associating an official event with the campaign and opening the way for later challenges before the Superior Electoral Court.

Flávio Bolsonaro’s team is taking a different approach. His allies plan to use the crisis involving the Supreme Federal Court as a draw for the Independence Day rally on São Paulo’s Avenida Paulista, where supporters are expected to gather at 3 p.m. After Estadão reported messages exchanged between Daniel Vorcaro, the former owner of Banco Master, and Justice Alexandre de Moraes, the slogan “Out with Lula” gained a new counterpart: “Out with Moraes.”

The report concerns 51 messages compiled in a Federal Police document whose secrecy was lifted by Justice André Mendonça, the rapporteur in the Banco Master case. The messages show Vorcaro seeking advice and guidance from Moraes, including whether he should leave the country shortly before his arrest was ordered. In Rio de Janeiro, Augusto Cury will hold an event in Copacabana, drawing on his recent rise in polls and seeking space outside the main political polarization.