Overview

• With Luís Roberto Barroso’s last day set for Friday, October 17, the Supreme Court will drop to 10 justices until a nominee is confirmed.
• At a private dinner with STF ministers, Lula listened to calls for a heavyweight choice, withheld names and voiced irritation over reports of the meeting.
• Planalto allies point to AGU chief Jorge Messias as the leading option, while Senate figures and several justices favor Rodrigo Pacheco, a calculation that will play out in the CCJ hearing and secret Senate vote.
• STF president Edson Fachin scheduled a meeting today with CGU minister Vinícius de Carvalho, who is considered alongside TCU minister Bruno Dantas in ongoing consultations.
• Pressure for representation intensified through a 13-name list of female candidates from civil-society groups, public appeals by figures including Melina Fachin and Anitta, and a new proposal to set gender and race quotas for superior courts.