Lula wins fourth term as Brazil president

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the Brazilian president, has staged a dramatic election fightback, defeating his far-right opponent, Flávio Bolsonaro, to claim a historic fourth term in power. With nearly 99% of votes counted the 80-year-old leftist received 51.75% of the vote to his 45-year-old rival’s 48.25%. The victory marks another remarkable comeback for the 80-year-old leftist leader, who has dominated Brazilian politics for decades. Lula, who served as president from 2003 to 2011 and returned to power after defeating Jair Bolsonaro in 2022, overcame concerns over rising prices, corruption scandals and questions about his government's performance to secure another term.
Flavio Bolsonaro, who finished first in the election's opening round, had sought to revive his father's far-right political movement. However, better-than-expected voter turnout helped Lula prevail, according to pollsters. The incumbent, who had lost by 2.2 million votes three weeks ago, has now won by 4.3 million. The 81-year-old leftist appears to have made up much of the difference through what his allies had identified as his main opportunity: persuading his voters to turn out. After a record abstention rate of 21.08% in the first round, which disproportionately affected Lula voters because they tend to live farther from polling stations, the rate fell to 19.21%.
Lula’s win is bad news for Bolsonaro who is serving a 27-year sentence for that botched power grab and was hoping to be freed and given a role in government had his son prevailed. It is also a blow for Donald Trump, the Bolsonaro clan’s most important international ally. The US president had been hoping Bolsonaro would become the latest in a series of pro-Trump leaders to take power in Latin America, including Abelardo de la Espriella in Colombia, Daniel Noboa in Ecuador, José Antonio Kast in Chile and Javier Milei in Argentina.