Brazil’s finance minister expected to step down next week, sources say

BRASILIA, March 9 (Reuters) – Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad is expected to step down by the end of next week to run for governor of Sao Paulo state as pushed for by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, four sources told Reuters on Monday.

Haddad has not yet had a final conversation with Lula about running for governor, one of the sources said, but the two have been speaking frequently about the matter.

The move was reported by newspaper O Globo earlier in the day. The finance ministry declined to comment.

Lula’s push for Haddad to run in Sao Paulo reflects the president’s need for a strong presence in a state that often votes heavily for the right-wing opposition. A weak performance for the leftist leader in Sao Paulo could undermine his presidential campaign, according to his party.

Haddad had not planned to run for office this year and previously voiced his intention to serve as one of the coordinators of Lula’s re-election campaign.

Sources told Reuters, however, that expectations of a tough election for the president have put pressure on Haddad to become a candidate in Sao Paulo.

A Datafolha poll released over the weekend showed that a potential second-round runoff between Lula and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, the eldest son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, would result in a technical tie.

Another Datafolha poll focused on Sao Paulo state showed Haddad would take 31% of the vote in a first round against 44% for Governor Tarcisio de Freitas, backed by the Bolsonaro family, who defeated Haddad in 2022.

(Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu, Bernardo Caram and Marcela Ayres; writing by Isabel Teles; editing by Gabriel Araujo and Deepa Babington)