SAO PAULO, (Reuters) – Brazil’s Green Party opted yesterday to remain neutral in the country’s Oct. 31 presidential runoff, saying the move could help members gain leverage and participate in the nation’s political debate more actively.
Silva, a former environment minister, said at a party convention in Sao Paulo that not aligning herself with any candidate allows her to serve as a “moderator” in the national politics.
The renowned Amazon defender, who campaigned on a platform of ethics over back-room politics, finished a strong third in the first round of voting on Oct. 3 and was credited with forcing the race to a runoff between ruling party candidate Dilma Rousseff and her opponent, former state Governor Jose Serra.
“We should place ourselves in a position as moderators,” she said. Both the Rousseff and Serra camps have aggressively courted Silva since she emerged from the first-round vote as a potential kingmaker, but the soft-spoken former rubber tapper had hinted earlier that she was unlikely to endorse either.
The decision was greeted by convention audience with a strong ovation, with one supporter yelling that the decision is making the Green Party “the party of the future.”
