Brazil’s Lula to reclaim presidency after beating Bolsonaro in vote
The leftist candidate in next month’s presidential election has declared victory after beating the far-right deposed leader in the first-round poll. But there are questions about his party’s chances to regain support.
On one side, the far-right candidate, Fernando Haddad (PT), won just under 48 percent of the vote, with his closest challenger Fernando Haddad (PT) in third place, behind far-left candidate Jair Bolsonaro (PSL) on about 20 per cent.
Haddad is now the “most likely” presidential candidate, according to pollster Ibope. But if the election goes to the second round, he is the “most likely” to lose, the pollster said.
The result is a big blow to Bolsonaro, who came first in the first-round vote, with 32.7 percent, and Haddad, who came second with 26.5 percent, far behind Haddad, the country’s former governor, who has not been seen as particularly popular in his two terms in office.
Fernando Haddad (PT)
The results also indicate that Haddad’s candidacy did not do enough to shake the country’s political establishment.
On the left, Bolsonaro’s main rival is the only candidate from the Workers’ Party (PT), with support from former presidential candidate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and the far-right congresswoman Marina Silva.
The top three were a single-party ticket, with Bolsonaro and Marina Silva’s candidacy making the PT the biggest opposition force.
However, the results contradict the PT’s campaign to form a non-partisan front to challenge Bolsonaro on the left.
The PT’s campaign did not call for any candidate to be excluded from the campaign. That is one of the strengths of the party – it does not get drawn into personalised conflicts between candidates, but seeks to have candidates of all parties represent its platform.
For Lula, the results are a huge disappointment.
He has told
