Former Car Wash stars seek to build front for 2022 election

Former federal judge Sergio Moro, task force prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol, and former Prosecutor General Rodrigo Janot were once catapulted to stardom for their role in Operation Car Wash — the biggest anti-corruption investigation in Brazilian history.

For the first time in Brazil, the operation held those in power to account, leading to convictions and even jail time for high-ranking politicians and executives. Car Wash’s key figures became anti-corruption crusaders to a significant part of the population.

But the majority view on Operation Car Wash has changed over the years, thanks largely to leaks of messages exchanged between judges and prosecutors, showing that they were working in cahoots to convict their targets.

Now, seeking out support from voters opposed to both Lula and Mr. Bolsonaro, key figures of Operation Car Wash are planning candidacies on anti-corruption platforms, despite being accused of corrupt practices themselves.

Former federal judge Sergio Moro, task force prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol, and former Prosecutor General Rodrigo Janot were once catapulted to stardom for their role in Operation Car Wash and are now testing whether their lingering popularity will be enough to elect them for public office.

However, when they were in the spotlight for their roles in Operation Car Wash, all three were adamant that they had no interest in entering politics, stressing the nonpartisan nature of their investigation.

The popularity of Messrs. Moro, Dallagnol, and Janot took hold after 2014, when the trio was held up as icons by a wave of right-leaning street protests that eventually culminated in the impeachment of former President Dilma Rousseff.

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