Do discurso antipolítica a uma retórica de adesão ao establishment: as estratégias de Alexandre Kalil e Romeu Zema nas eleições de 2016 a 2022

Resumo (EN)

This article analyzes the communication strategies used by candidates Alexandre Kalil (PSD) and Romeu Zema (Novo) during the electoral campaigns for the Belo Horizonte City Hall in 2016, and for the State Government in 2018 and 2022. It seeks to trace the trajectory of these two leaders who entered the political arena with an anti-political discourse during the 2016, 2018, and 2022 elections, yet eventually adopted the traditional modus operandi of politics. We examined 170 videos posted on Facebook by Zema and Kalil throughout these elections using content analysis methodology. Through this categorization, it is possible to discern the limitations and paradoxes that anti-political rhetoric faces upon assuming power, as well as to explore some of the directions such practices might take within the realm of electoral communication. The campaigns of Kalil and Zema reveal a transition from outsiders to insiders, with both adapting their strategies and discourses. Kalil abandoned the anti-politics narrative in favor of alliances with traditional leaders, while Zema moderated his anti-politics narratives, maintaining pragmatic alliances but preserving his image as a manager. These changes reflect both candidates’ accommodation to the institutionalized political field.