João Henrique Caldas (PL), re-elected mayor of Maceió, capital of Alagoas, celebrated his victory in the 2024 municipal elections, highlighting that the election focused on campaign proposals.
In an interview with CNN Behind the Scenes After his re-election in the first round, JHC, as he is known, reflected on the meaning of his significant vote and shared his plans for the next term.
The mayor attributed his victory, the biggest in the city’s history, to the work carried out over the last four years. “This was very significant, I think it was the result of all the work we did over four years,” said JHC, who obtained 83% of the votes.
Priority projects for Maceió
For the new term, the re-elected mayor presented a series of priority projects, focusing on areas crucial to the city’s development:
- Urban mobility: Implementation of BRT (Bus Rapid Transit), which will benefit 80% of the capital’s 650,000 monthly users of public transport.
- Social assistance: Expansion of the number of popular restaurants, with the goal of doubling the distribution of meals, from 3 million to 6 million.
- Health: Advances in health services, including the recent acquisition of a hospital considered the best in the Northeast and the creation of the largest diagnostic imaging center in Alagoas.
JHC promised to bring an even faster pace to municipal management: “I am even more excited, with more vigor after this extremely high legitimacy from the voters of Maceió”.
Analysis of the political scenario
Asked about the PL’s performance in the municipal elections, the mayor made a cautious analysis. Although recognizing that “the numbers speak for themselves”, JHC considered that expressive votes like his in Maceió encompass voters from different political spectrums.
The re-elected mayor noted that, despite attempts to nationalize the debate, municipal elections tend to focus on local issues.
“The debate was limited to the proposals of the candidates who had the best solutions to citizens’ problems”, concluded JHC, emphasizing that voters prioritized the evaluation of the candidates’ capabilities and proposals to solve Maceió’s specific challenges.
