President Lula (PT) selected the Justice and Public Security Minister Flávio Dino (PSB) to become a member of the Supreme Federal Court (STF). If approved by the Senate, Dino will replace Rosa Weber, who retired this year.
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Political Debate
The president told allies that it would be interesting to nominate someone of the minister’s quality to carry out a political debate in the STF. The assessment is that, with his legal background, Dino is capable of being an influential magistrate in the court.
Flávio Dino’s profile
Dino is 55 years old, and he was born in São Luís, Maranhão. He was a federal judge before starting a career in politics. He was general secretary of the National Council of Justice (CNJ), president of the Association of Federal Judges and advisor to the presidency of the STF.
In his political career, he was a federal deputy, presided over Embratur in the Dilma Rousseff (PT) government and governed Maranhão for two terms (2015-2022). In 2022, he was elected senator, a position from which he graduated to command the Justice and Public Security Ministry.
In Campaign
In a letter filed with the Senate’s Constitution, Justice and Citizenship Commission (CCJ), the Minister of Justice, Flávio Dino, said that he will act “technically and impartially” if he is approved for a vacancy on the Federal Supreme Court (STF). The letter is part of the protocol when someone is nominated for a vacancy at the STF. In recent days, Dino has been touring the Senate offices to ask for votes and present the basis of his actions, if he is appointed to the STF.
Changes in the Justice and Public Security Ministry
The names of Ricardo Lewandowski, Marco Aurélio de Carvalho, Jorge Messias, Ricardo Capelli and Simone Tebet are mentioned as potential substitutes for Dino, if he leaves the Ministry, but there is no decision from the President yet.The Government has already announced that Dino’s leave will not lead to a dismemberment of the Ministry. Media sources claim that the dismemberment, for Lula, would harm the Government’s image, as responsibility for public security problems would be attributed to federal authorities, taking responsibility away from governors.
Analysis:
According to jurists from large national universities, Dino is very competent for the position, however, his entry into the STF reinforces the idea that the Supreme Court has a political side. A fact that has generated numerous crises between the Supreme Court and the Executive, during Jair Bolsonaro’s mandate, and now leads to crises with the Legislature, which launches proposals to restrict the court’s ability to act. For experts, such an indication should be avoided to increase the legitimacy and, mainly, the acceptability of the Court’s decisions. The ideal would be nominations from individuals with a strictly technical profile, avoiding someone from the political environment, such as Dino, who has been a deputy, governor, senator and is now a minister. An aggravating factor would be the media stance, as it draws attention to figures who should be more discreet, with less personal actions.
However, many understand that the very fact that Dino is a technician and politician will bring benefits. Since he will be able to assume the profile of an articulator and peacemaker, mitigating and minimizing the STF’s interference with right-wing or left-wing political legislative solutions, by working towards a less engaged institutional position.
A third line of analysis understands that this nomination shows President Lula’s intentions to solidify a new candidacy in his political future, despite statements that he will not seek re-election. Thus, he sees the importance of a profile like Dino’s, as a politicized jurist, for the stability of institutions, due to having gone through experiences together, such as those on January 8th. This is because there is also the expectation that the next presidential campaign will be as difficult as the one in 2018 and 2022.
