Brazil Election: Lula Clinches Record Fourth Term

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva secured a record fourth non-consecutive term as president of Brazil on Sunday. The 80-year-old leftist defeated right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, in the run-off. Electoral authorities declared Lula the winner when 98.76 percent of ballots had been counted. He received more than 51 percent of the vote, while Bolsonaro captured 48 percent.

The victory completes a rare political comeback. No presidential candidate in Brazil has finished second in the first round and won the run-off in nearly four decades. Three weeks earlier, on October 4, Bolsonaro led the first round with 47.03 percent of the vote against Lula's 45.16 percent. The gap amounted to 2.2 million votes. In the closing days, polls showed the two men virtually tied. Bolsonaro briefly held a lead as counting began on Sunday evening. Lula gained the advantage as results arrived from the northeast, a traditional base for his Workers' Party. Bolsonaro maintained strength in the south, southeast, and centre-west.

A late decision to extend voting hours created confusion on election day. Both campaigns requested additional time. Lula's team accused local officials of cutting public transport to hinder lower-income voters. Bolsonaro's campaign cited heavy rain and flooding. In Minas Gerais, the regional electoral court reported that 349 polling locations lost electricity. Voting machines continued to operate on backup batteries. Voting was scheduled to end at 5pm Brasilia time. Supreme Court Justice Cristiano Zanin ordered stations to remain open until 7pm. The order arrived after some stations had already closed. Zanin later clarified that stations which had shut down would stay closed. Some voters were turned away despite the extension.

Flavio Bolsonaro has pledged to annul the vote. He accused Justice Zanin of judicial malfeasance and noted that Lula appointed him to the Supreme Court in 2023. "He changes the rules of the game mid-game," Bolsonaro said. "It is impossible to recognise the results of the election," he told supporters. Brazil's Federal Police are investigating transport disruptions in five states. A court in Salvador ordered the arrest of the city's transport secretary over claims he directed bus service cuts. Donald Trump Jr criticized the extension on social media. Monica Yanakiew, an Al Jazeera correspondent, described the judicial system as "very divided" and said "there will need to be a lot of political negotiation."

Turnout may have influenced the final result. Andrei Roman, head of AtlasIntel, cited a drop in abstention as a factor in Lula's win. An estimated 33.4 million Brazilians stayed home in the first round. That figure represented about 21 percent of the electorate, the highest abstention rate in a general election since 1998. Lula made late pitches to his working-class base, including a promise to pursue free public transport on weekends.

The outcome complicates US President Donald Trump's strategy in Latin America. Right-wing candidates have recently won elections in the region. Reuters reported on Saturday that State Department officials had pushed for sanctions to weaken Lula. Asked on Sunday whom he wanted to win, Trump said: "I don't want to get into that, but we are watching."

Lula built his campaign around defending Brazilian sovereignty. He cited Trump's tariffs and remarks on Jair Bolsonaro's trial as foreign interference. In his victory speech, Lula said he had to "overcome interference coming from the outside." "The election was a defeat for denialism," he said. "It was a defeat for lies."