Certification ceremony of Lula, Alckmin to be held today
President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and vice-President–elect Geraldo Alckmin on Monday (Dec. 12) will be given a diploma sealing their future positions in a session scheduled for 2 pm at the Superior Electoral Court.
Known as diplomação, the official ceremony marks the end of the electoral process in Brazil and will be protected by a robust security scheme and attended by over a hundred guests. On the occasion, court head Alexandre de Moraes is expected to sign the diploma attesting that Lula and Alckmin were elected by popular vote.
The same protocol must be carried out for those elected governor and vice-governor across all of Brazil’s 27 regional electoral courts. The victors in this year’s elections must be certified in their respective positions by December 19.
Under the country’s Electoral Code, the diploma must include the name of the candidate, the name of the party by which they were elected, the position, and further information at the discretion of the judge or court. The formality is required before the winning candidates may be sworn into office. In other words, those who do not receive their diploma will not be allowed to take their posts.
The certification may be barred by the rejection of a candidacy, even when ongoing appeals exist. Conversely, appeals filed against the certification cannot stop it. Such a motion may be lodged in case some new cause of ineligibility, not yet considered by the electoral authorities, is found.
Last Tuesday (6), after proclaiming Lula and Alckmin elected, Moraes stated that no appeals have been submitted against their certification at the electoral court.
