Cardoso Asks For Unity Against Radical Candidates To Avoid Worsening Recession

The former president said that he rarely has seen such a challenging political and social landscape as right now

São Paulo

Former president of Brazil Fernando Henrique Cardoso released on Thursday (20th) an open letter asking unity from candidates "who don't abide by radical concepts."

Without naming any names, he pleaded for a collective endorsement of "whoever has the best chances of succeeding in the election", otherwise, "the crisis will certainly worsen".

The letter targets Jair Bolsonaro (PSL) and Fernando Haddad (PT), without clearly mentioning them. Cardoso also doesn't specify who the moderate candidates are, but they are assumed to include  Geraldo Alckmin (PSDB), Marina Silva (Rede), Henrique Meirelles (MDB), Alvaro Dias (Podemos) and possibly Ciro Gomes (PDT).
 

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Former president of Brazil Fernando Henrique Cardoso - Folhapress

He also doesn't outright asks for the readers to support Alckmin, his party's candidate. But right after releasing the statement, Cardoso declared again for Alckmin on Twitter.
"I sent a letter to voters asking them to be sensible and for the moderate candidates to join forces. Alckmin certainly fits the bill, but you don't propose a meeting and say 'I will only talk to this one person'"

The former president says that, given such a dramatic context, one can either strive for political cohesion, "with courage to say what is already known and good sense to gather the most capable people to steer this ship," or "the electoral patch-up job of choosing a savior or a demagogue, even if well-intentioned, will take as to an even deeper economic, social and political crisis."


Translated by NATASHA MADOV

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