Internal discomfort leads STJ to its last presidential election by acclamation

Elected this Tuesday (23/4), Minister Herman Benjamin will be the last chosen by acclamation to occupy the Presidency of the Superior Court of Justice. An internal discomfort led the ministers of the house to determine that, in the next election, there will be voting and campaigning, as ordered by the court rules.

Elections by acclamation have been a practice in the STJ. In a court with 33 members, ministers have taken turns in management positions, according to seniority. The order is usually, following this rule, the occupation of the Vice-Presidency, then the National Inspectorate of Justice and, finally, the Presidency.

Ministers Luis Felipe Salomão, for the vice-presidency, and Mauro Campbell, for the Internal Affairs Department, were also elected by acclamation.

Before the vote this Tuesday, minister João Otávio de Noronha asked for the floor and proposed that, from the next election, in 2026, the Plenary adopt what is foreseen in the internal rules of the Citizenship Court.

The rule states that the president will be elected by secret vote of the Plenary, 30 days before the end of the biennium, as long as there is the presence of at least two thirds of the members of the court, including the president.

The change was approved unanimously. Only ministers who have already served as president — João Otávio de Noronha and Humberto Martins — or who could have done so — such as Nancy Andrighi, who, due to seniority, gave up her position spoke on this topic.

Those who would be affected by the proposal, theoretically, would be Og Fernandes and Salomão. Og is next in seniority to assume the Presidency. He must retire by November 2026. Therefore, he would have about three months in the position, starting in August of that year. The next would be Solomon.

Times have changed

According to Noronha, it is important to adopt the rite of secret election for the Presidency because times have changed in the STJ. He pointed out that the climate internally has not been the same and that differences between colleagues have emerged very strongly.

“News comes out of this house to the press, against colleagues. There is a hostile atmosphere in the sessions. We no longer move around like we used to. I believe that the time is now to restore formalities, in accordance with the internal regulations.”

The resumption of the secret election will open space for greater composition among members. The proposal did not affect Herman Benjamin’s election because it already brought together this consensus. “We wouldn’t have any problem electing him,” said Noronha.

Minister Nancy Andrighi also asked to speak and said that, in principle, she was determined not to agree with the acclamation, but preferred to adhere to Noronha’s proposal.

“Let this be the last time and let it be recorded in memory, so that it will not be said, in the next election, that it was not spoken or agreed upon. It is important to maintain solemnity and posture in this court. In this court, we forget that there are internal regulations”, said the minister.