Renan Santos launches campaign with violent rhetoric against crime

Renan Santos, the presidential candidate for the Missão party, kicked off his campaign Sunday in São Paulo with a rally at Largo São Francisco. In a speech lasting about an hour, Santos primarily targeted President Lula and Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, who are leading in the polls.

Choosing the location in front of the University of São Paulo's Law School, where he was once a student, Santos addressed a predominantly young audience. He vowed to prioritize fighting organized crime and fostering development to position Brazil as a global leader. "Can you imagine the first flight on the presidential plane, where we will go to the first cities taken by organized crime, and with the police forces, on January 6th we will devastate the first enemies, we will stain the ground red with the blood of these vagrants," Santos declared.

The candidate concluded the event by imitating American singer Bob Dylan, performing his campaign jingle while wearing sunglasses and playing guitar and harmonica with a mouth brace. Other Missão party leaders also spoke at the rally, including federal deputy Kim Kataguiri, vice presidential candidate Aroldo Medina, São Paulo city councilwoman Amanda Vettorazzo, and former state deputy Arthur do Val.

Last week, USP students protested against Santos holding his rally in front of the faculty. A separate event on Thursday brought together leaders from social movements like UJS (Union of Socialist Youth) and UEE (Union of State Students), as well as representatives from oil worker and journalist unions.

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Can you imagine the first flight on the presidential plane, where we will go to the first cities taken by organized crime, and with the police forces, on January 6th we will devastate the first enemies, we will stain the ground red with the blood of these vagrants